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THE 


SEA LIONS 

OB 

THE LOST SEALEBS 


BY 

J. FENIMORE COOPER 




WITH AN 


INTRODUCTION BY SUSAN FENIMORE COOPER 


Daughter of Faith, awake, arise, illume 
The dread unknown, the chaos of the tomb ; 
Melt, and dispel, ye spectre doubts that roll 
Cimmerian darkness o’er the parting soul. 

Campbell. 



BOSTON 

HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY 
©{)c Htuenstie Prcsis, CttmtoityP 


A \ . 



V 



Copyright, 1884, 

81 SUSAN FENIMORE COOPER. 


ft 


• » 

• 4 

• • • 


RIVERSIDE, CAMBRIDGE: 
STEREOTYPED AND PRINTED BX 
H. 0. HOUGHTON AND COMPANY. 


PREFACE. 


If anything connected with the hardness of the human 
heart could surprise us, it surely would be the indifference 
with which men live on, engrossed by their worldly objects, 
amid the sublime natural phenomena that so eloquently and 
unceasingly speak to their imaginations, affections, and judg- 
ments. So completely is the existence of the individual 
concentrated in self, and so regardless does he get to be of 
all without that contracted circle, that it does not probably 
happen to one man in ten, that his thoughts are drawn aside 
from this intense study of his own immediate wants, wishes, 
and plans, even once in the twenty-four hours, to contem- 
plate the majesty, mercy, truth, and justice of the Divine 
Being that has set him, as an atom, amid the myriads of the 
hosts of heaven and earth. 

The physical marvels of the universe produce little more 
reflection than the profoundest moral truths. A million of 
eyes shall pass over the firmament, on a cloudless night, and 
not a hundred minds shall be filled with a proper sense of 
the power of the dread Being that created all that is there 
— not a hundred hearts glow with the adoration that such 
an appeal to the senses and understanding ought naturally 
to. produce. This indifference, in. a great measure, comes of 
familiarity ; the things that we so constantly have before us, 
becoming as a part of the air we breathe, and as little re- 
garded. 

One of the consequences of this disposition to disregard 
the Almighty Hand, as it is so plainly visible in all around 


VI 


PREFACE. 


us, is that )f substituting our own powers in its stead. In 
this period of the world, in enlightened countries, and in the 
absence of direct idolatry, few men aie so hardy as to deny 
the existence and might of a Supreme Being ; but, this fact 
admitted, how few really feel that profound reverence for 
him that the nature of our relations justly demands ! It is 
the want of a due sense of humility ; and a sad misconcep- 
tion of what we are, and for what we were created, that 
misleads us in the due estimate of our own insignificance, 
as compared with the majesty of God. 

Very few men attain enough of human knowledge to be 
fully aware how much remains to be learned, and of that 
which they never can hope to acquire. We hear a great 
deal of god-like minds, and of the far-reaching faculties we 
possess ; and it may all be worthy of our eulogiums, until 
we compare ourselves in these, as in other particulars, with 
Him who produced them. Then, indeed, the utter insignifi- 
cance of our means becomes too apparent to admit of a cavil. 
We know that we are born, and that we die ; science has 
been able to grapple with all the phenomena of these two 
great physical facts, with the exception of the most material 
of all — those which should tell us what is life, and what is 
death. Something that we cannot comprehend lies at the 
root of every distinct division of natural phenomena. Thus 
far shalt thou go and no farther, seems to be imprinted on 
every great fact of creation. There is a point attained in 
each and all of our acquisitions, where a mystery that no 
human mind can scan takes the place of demonstration and 
conjecture. This point may lie more remote with some in- 
tellects than with others ; but it exists for all, arrests the in- 
ductions of all, conceals all. 

We are aware that the more learned among those who 
disbelieve in the divinity of Christ suppose themselves to be 
sustained by written authority, contending for errors of 
translation, mistakes, and misapprehensions in the ancient 
text. Nevertheless, we are inclined to think that nine 


PREFACE. 


Vll 


tenths of those who refuse the old and accept the new opin- 
ion, do so for a motive no better than a disinclination to be- 
lieve that which they cannot comprehend. This pride is one 
of the most insinuating of our foibles, and is to be watched 
as a most potent enemy. 

How completely and philosophically does the venerable 
Christian creed embrace and modify all these workings of 
the heart! We say philosophically, for it were not possible 
for mind to give a juster analysis of the whole subject than 
St. Paul’s most comprehensive but brief definition of Faith. 
It is this Faith which forms the mighty feature of the 
church on earth. It equalizes capacities, conditions, means, 
and ends, holding out the same encouragement and hope to 
the least as to the most gifted of the race ; counting gifts in 
their ordinary and more secular points of view. 

It is when health or the usual means of success abandon 
us, that we are made to feel how totally we are insufficient 
for the achievement of even our own purposes, much less to 
qualify us to reason on the deep mysteries that conceal the 
beginning and the end. It has often been said that the most 
successful leaders of their fellow men have had the clearest 
views of their own insufficiency to attain their own objects. 
If Napoleon ever said, as has been attributed to him, “ Je 
propose et je dispose ,” it must have been in one of those fleet- 
ing moments in which success blinded him to the fact of his 
own insufficiency. No man had a deeper reliance on fort- 
une, cast the result of great events on the decrees of fate, 
or more anxiously watched the rising and setting of what 
he called his “ star.” This was a faith that could lead to no 
good ; but it clearly denoted how far the boldest designs, the 
most ample means, and the most vaulting ambition, fall 
short of giving that sublime consciousness of power and its 
fruits that distinguish the reign of Omnipotence. 

In this book the design has been to portray man on a 
novel field of action, and to exhibit his dependence on the 
hand that does not suffer a sparrow to fall unheeded. The 


vm 


PREFACE. 


recent attempts of science, which employed the seamen of 
the four greatest maritime states of Christendom, made dis- 
coveries that have rendered the polar circles much more 
familiar to this age, than to any that has preceded it, so far 
as existing records show. We say “existing records;” for 
there is much reason for believing that the ancients had a 
knowledge of our hemisphere, though less for supposing 
that they ever braved the dangers of the high latitudes. 
Many are, just at this moment, much disposed to believe 
that “ Ophir ” was on this continent ; though for a reason 
no better than the circumstance of the recent discoveries of 
much gold. Such savans should remember that “ peacocks 99 
came from ancient Ophir. If this be in truth that land, the 
adventurers of Israel caused it to be denuded of that bird 
of beautiful plumage. 

Such names as those of Parry, Sabine, Ross, Franklin, 
Wilkes, Hudson, Ringgold, etc., etc., with those of divers gal- 
lant Frenchmen and Russians, command our most profound 
respect ; for no battles or victories can redound more to the 
credit of seamen than the dangers they all encountered, and 
the conquests they have all achieved. One of those named, 
a resolute and experienced seaman, it is thought must, at 
this moment, be locked in the frosts of the arctic circle, after 
having passed half a life in the endeavor to push his dis- 
coveries into those remote and frozen regions. He bears 
the name of the most distinguished of the philosophers of 
this country ; and nature has stamped on his features — by 
one of those secret laws which just as much baffle our 
means of comprehension, as the greatest of all our myster- 
ies, the incarnation of the Son of God — a resemblance that, 
of itself, would go to show that they are of the same race. 
Any one who has ever seen this imprisoned navigator, and 
who is familiar with the countenances of the men of the 
same name who are to be found in numbers amongst our- 
selves, must be struck with a likeness that lies as much be- 
yond the grasp of that reason of which we are so proud, as 


FREFACE. 


ix 


the sublimest facts taught by induction, science, or revela- 
tion. Parties are, at this moment, out in search of him and 
his followers ; and it is to be hoped that the Providence 
which has so singularly attempered the different circles and 
zones of our globe, placing this under a burning sun, and 
that beneath enduring frosts, will have included in its divine 
forethough a sufficient care for these bold wanderers to re- 
store them, unharmed, to their friends and country. In a 
contrary event, their names must be transmitted to poster- 
ity as the victims to a laudable desire to enlarge the circle 
of human knowledge, and with it, we trust, to increase the 
glory due to God. 































































































































































































































































INTRODUCTION. 

BY SUSAN FENIMORE COOPER. 


From the day when the little Ariel first sailed into view 
and dropped her anchor in that gloomy bay of the German 
Ocean, where, at a later hour, Long Tom Coffin and her- 
self were to close their career together, many a noble ship 
had been launched and sailed by the same master hand. 
Who, indeed, shall call over the names of all the vessels 
bearing his flag ? Never admiral of the ocean sea held so 
great a fleet under command. Proud men-of-war are here, 
from the lofty three-decker to the light gun-boat, fight- 
ing his battles; merchantmen of every rig — brig, bark, 
schooner, and yacht — come and go, amid storm and tem- 
pest, with swift and skillful manoeuvre, at his will ; the light 
felucca flies wing-and-wing over the blue Mediterranean ; 
the bark canoe glides over the lake, steals along the shadowy 
forest stream, or the reedy shore, doing his bidding. And 
how many brave and generous hearts, how many gallant 
spirits, are moving about those ’decks ! What deeds of high 
adventure are wrought among them ! What an atmosphere 
of picture and poetry lights up eye and arm, sail, and spar, 
and flag! Could he have gathered his full fleet together 
and sailed at their head into port, that would have been, in- 
deed, a gallant nautical gala, filling the proudest harbor in 
the land. And his ships are all from the best yards, well 
commanded, skillfully piloted. The poetical light which 
lingers about them is warm with reality ; their anchors hold 
as firm a grasp of the bottom as those of the heaviest hulk 
that can be found in the harbor to-day. 


Xll 


INTRODUCTION. 


During thirty long years his ships were coming and going 
over the high seas, good people ashore still following their 
movements with more or less of interest. But now we be- 
hold the last of that numerous fleet. His nautical pictures 
began with that craft especially American, the schooner; 
and in this, the latest of his marine writings, the interest is 
also gathered about two schooners, each bearing the name 
of The Sea Lion, and both sailing from home waters on a 
voyage of daring adventure into far distant seas towardi 
the southern pole. 

In his early married life Mr. Cooper had paid repeated 
s visits, during the summer and autumn months, to a near rel 
ative of Mrs. Cooper, living on one of the islands off th* 
northeastern shore of Long Island. This gentleman led a 
sort of semi-aquatic life, which had great attraction for a 
young man who was still a seaman at heart. All communi- 
cation with the main-land — or rather with Long Island — 
was necessarily carried on by w~ater, a channel a mile in 
width dividing the two islands at the nearest point north- 
ward, and one of half a mile to the southward. The estate 
was a large one, originally half the island which bore the 
pleasant name of Shelter Island, and was six miles long, 
though very irregular in outline. The Indian name wa& 
Manhansack, correctly descriptive, as many of their names 
were, meaning an island sheltered by other islands. There 
were still a few Indians on the estate, where an old- Indian 
Queen, as she was called, lived in a wigwam and reigned 
over a handful of followers. The island lay at the mouth 
of Great Peconic Bay, and as a matter of course the fishing 
was excellent. There was a little fleet of fishing smacks, 
sail-boats, and row-boats, with a trading sloop or two, be- 
longing to the island, which had several wharves of its own. 
Fishing parties were a constant amusement; blue-fish, black- 
fish, sheepshead, and others of the choicer kinds were, each 
in their season, brought in daily ; lobsters, crabs, oysters, 
clams, both soft and hard, never failed. Shooting, at the 
right season, was also a great resource, your regular Long 


INTRODUCTION. 


Xlll 


Islander of that day being almost always a good shot. A 
gun-rack was found in the hall of most houses of any im- 
portance, as a matter of course. Half a century since 
deer and foxes were still to be found in the wooded parts 
of the island, and occasionally a regular hunt enlivened the 
young men. But fowling was the chief sport. Wild geese 
and ducks hovered over the shores of the island, and in its 
ponds, in flocks almost as large as those of the wild pigeons 
with which the visitor from Otsego had been familiar from 
childhood ; quails abounded, woodcock were common, snipe 
and all shore birds were numerous. In these fishing and 
shooting parties Mr. Cooper took his place with great zest. 

The boats from Shelter Island were of course in constant 
communication with Sag Harbor, then perhaps the most im- 
portant whaling port of the country. Mr. Cooper was much 
interested in visiting the different ships, making acquaint- 
ance with their captains and mates, and hearing the details 
of their adventures. Whaling came naturally to the Long 
Islanders ; very early in the settlement of the country the 
colonists were successful in taking the whale, and turning 
the oil to good account. Whales seem to have been abun- 
dant in the waters surrounding the island, not only in the 
ocean, eastward, but also in the Sound. There must have 
been very large numbers of these enormous creatures on the 
coast of America at the time of the discovery. A whale was 
actually- stranded as far inland as the island at the mouth 
of the Mohawk in March, 1647, having come spouting 
the whole length of the Hudson River to that point. The 
Long Islanders, as we have remarked, became whalemen 
very early. Boats adapted to this fishery were kept for the 
purpose on all the principal shore farms, the good-man 
wielding the scythe at one season, the harpoon at another. 
Even the Indians became expert whalers in this sort of 
coast fishery, and were employed by the colonists for this 
purpose. The record of an agreement between certain 
Montauk Indians and a Dutch trader to this effect has been 
preserved: ‘‘April 2 nd , 1668. Know all men by these 


XIV 


INTRODUCTION. 


presents y* wee, being Indians of Montauket, doe engage 
ourselves in a bond of ten pounds sterling for to goe to 
sea uppon ye account of killing of wliale3 this next ensuing 
season, beginning at ye l* 4 day of November next, ending 
ye first day of Aprill ensuing, and that for ye account of 
Jacobus Skallinger and his partners of Easthampton ; and 
engage to attend diligently with all opportunitie for ye kill- 
ing of whales, or other fish, for ye summe of three shillings 
a day for every Indian ; ye said Jacobus Skallinger and 
partners to furnish all necessarie craft and convenient tack- 
ling for ye designe.” This boat’s crew would seem to have 
been sent off without any whites to direct them. A few 
years later u twelve very stout whales ” were killed in the 
spring months on the south coast of the island. So impor- 
tant was this fishery considered at the time, that in some of 
the settlements every able-bodied man on the shore farms 
was obliged to take his turn in watching for whales, from 
a public look-out, and on one being seen to summon the 
good people from their work ashore to the chase. 

The Smiths were a numerous and highly respectable 
clan on Long Island. Two of the more prominent fami- 
lies were known by the local titles of “ Bull Smiths,” and 
“ Tangier Smiths,” both dating from early colonial days. 
Bull Smith, whose Christian name was Richard, settled 
near Stoney Brook, on a tract of land known afterwards 
as Smitlitown, and which he eventually held by patent, 
“ upon condition of yielding every year, as quitt-rent, to His 
Royal Highness” (the Duke of York), “ one fatt lamb.” 
Long Island tradition says that a portion of this land was 
originally granted to Richard Smith by the Indians, under 
peculiar circumstances. He was the happy owner of a large 
bull, a favorite animal, so docile that his master frequently 
used him for riding. With this feat the Indians were 
greatly delighted, and, as Mr. Smith was a favorite with 
their sachems, they agreed to make him a free gift of as 
much land as he could ride over, seated on his bull, between 
sunrise and sunset. The offer was accepted. The colonist 


INTRODUCTION. 


XV 

mounted the bull, and, followed by a numerous escort of 
Indians, rode to such good effect that he made a circuit 
containing a large tract of land, and also obtained for him- 
self and his posterity the name of “ Bull Smith.” His de- 
scendants, highly respectable people, are still found at Smith- 
town, and still bear in common parlance the distinctive 
name of “ Bull Smiths.” 

“Tangier Smith” derived his name from the office he 
had held. Colonel William Smith of the British army had 
been governor of Tangier in Africa, when that town was 
ceded to England by the King of Portugal, as a part of the 
marriage portion of the Infanta Catherine, when she mar- 
ried Charles II. Colonel Smith afterwards came to Amer- 
ica and purchased, partly from the colonists, and partly from 
the Indians, a large tract of land for which he obtained a 
patent under the name of St. George’s Manor. The Long 
Island colonists, to their* credit be it said, very generally 
made a payment of some kind to the Indians before taking 
possession of their lands. It is true their payments usually 
consisted of a few kettles, and knives, and coats, and some- 
times needles , and were much below the real value of the 
lands purchased, but they were satisfactory to the red man. 
Colonel Smith, however, paid the Indian sachems for his 
lands on the Mastic thirty-five pounds, coin of the realm. 
There are descendants of Tangier Smith still living at St. 
George’s Manor to-day. In the last century many were the 
whales caught by the boats of both Bull Smith and Tangier 
Smith. After the death of Colonel Smith, his widow 
“ Madame Martha Smith,” who was a woman of energy, 
amid many other cares, still looked after the whales. This 
good lady, a great-great-grandmother of the author’s wife, 
was in the habit of keeping a memorandum book, still in 
good preservation, and which the writer of these notes has 
seen ; among other records occur the following : — 

“Jan. ye 16, 1707, my company killed a yearling whale 
made 27 barrels. Feb. ye 4 Indian Harry with his boat, 
struck a stunt whale and could not kill it — called for my 


XVI 


INTRODUCTION. 


boat to help him. I had but a third, which was 4 barrels. 
Feb. 22, my two boats, and my son’s, and Floyd’s boats, 
killed a yearling whale, of which I had half — made 36, my 
share 18 barrels. Feb. 24, my company killed a school 
whale, which made 35 barrels. March 13, my company 
killed a small yearling, made 30 barrels. March 17, my 
company killed two yearlings in one day ; one made 27, the 
other 14 barrels.” 

How abundant the whales must have been on the Ameri- 
can coast at that period ! Madame Martha Smith, sitting 
comfortably in her house at St. George’s Manor, could see 
them spouting and tumbling about in the Sound, and, as she 
sat at her spinning-wheel or' tambour-frame, received re- 
ports from her boats. 

There was a duty paid to the provincial government by 
this fishery, as appears from a receipt to the Lady of St. 
George’s Manor : — 

“ New-York, this 5 th June, 1707, received of Nathan 
Simpson, ye summe of fifteen pounds, fifteen shillings, per 
acc* 1 of Mad 0 Martha Smith it being ye 20 th part of her 
eyle , by virtue of a warrant from My L d Cornbury, dated 
March 25 th , last past, 1707. 

“ Per me, Elias Boudinot.” 

A considerable sum this, £315, from one whaling farm , 
in the course of three months. Seven whales were cap- 
tured in that time. 

The whale-boat differed from the ordinary boats of mer- 
chant vessels. It was sharp at both ends, in order that it 
might “ back off,” as well as “ pull on ” ; it steered with 
an oar, instead of a rudder, in order that the bows might 
be thrown round to avoid danger, when not in motion ; it 
was buoyant, and made to withstand the shock of waves at 
both ends ; and it was light and shallow, though strong, that 
it might be pulled with facility. 

The whale-boats of the Sound rendered active guerilla 
service in the war of the Revolution. They were a sort of 
privateersmen, on a small scale, and with all the daring of 


INTRODUCTION. 


XVII 


that class had also their loose ideas of property. Many 
were their bold feats; their skill with the oar, the excel- 
lence of the boats, and the small size of their craft gliding 
stealthily along the shores, gave them many advantages for 
a sudden descent upon any given point. They were greatly 
dreaded by the Tories, and actually forced many of the 
English officers to withdraw from different outlying stations 
on Long Island, to Brooklyn or New York. They, came 
singly at times, but occasionally in little fleets of eight or 
ten boats, and repeatedly captured sloops and schooners of 
some size. 

It was in the closing years of the last century, after the 
war of the Revolution, that the first whaling vessels were 
sent, as an experiment, to far southern latitudes, and the 
results were so successful that the Long Islanders entered 
largely into this adventurous pursuit. From whaling in 
boats on the shores of the island, they sailed in large ships 
on long voyages. Indians were still found among their 
crews. The fishery for sperm whales in the Pacific and 
Indian oceans was not developed until after the war of 
1812. In the course of years the whaling-fleet from Sag 
Harbor alone amounted to nearly fifty ships, valued with 
their outfit at nearly a million of dollars, and employing 
more than a thousand seamen. The whole number of whal- 
ing craft, when the fishery was at its height, numbered about 
six hundred vessels from different ports of the country. 
This fishery has very greatly diminished of late years. The 
whales have been all but exterminated in many of their 
former haunts. 

During his visits to Shelter Island the young man from 
Otsego, still a sailor at heart, and not dreaming of ever be- 
coming a writer, was much interested in hearing the details 
of those whaling voyages, and much amused with the whal- 
ing spirit pervading the whole community at Sag Harbor. 
Some few ye$rs later, after he had written “ The Spy,” he 
purchased a whaling ship, the Union, in connection with a 
kinsman, Mr. Charles Dering, and sent her from Sag Har- 
k 


XV 111 


INTRODUCTION. 


bor around Cape Horn. She made several voyages, and 
the results were satisfactory. But as he became more occu- 
pied with his pen, and was looking forward to visiting Eu- 
rope, he sold his share in the whaler. His connection with 
Long Island always brought pleasant recollections with it; 
and it was not only at Shelter Island that he had been wel- 
comed, but also at Fort Neck, where he was on intimate 
terms with other relatives. And now in his old age, in 
1849, while sitting in the library of his paternal home on 
Lake Otsego, he planned and wrote another sea tale, — the 
last of a long series, — the scenes of which, so far at least as 
they are connected with the land, are laid in sight of Shel- 
ter Island. It is a thoroughly Suffolk County narrative. 

Long Island, as the reader will remember, is divided into 
three counties, Kings, Queens, and Suffolk. These were 
all legally named in 1683. Kings was an act of homage 
to that very witty but worthless sovereign Charles II., who 
“ never said a foolish thing, and never did a wise one.” 
Queens was a compliment to the gentle, harmless Cather- 
ine of Braganza, the very opposite of her husband, in most 
particulars. The origin of the name of Suffolk is a puzzle 
not easy to unravel. There was no prominent individual in 
England at that date bearing the title of Suffolk — no cour- 
tier, no politician, not even an illegitimate son of the King, 
as in the case of Richmond County. Probably the name 
is due to the influence of some prominent man born in Suf- 
folk County, in the mother country. 

Is the reader aware, by the by, that Nassau may be con- 
sidered the legal name of Long Island to-day? Oddly 
enough it was the Dutch who, from the first discoveries, al- 
ways called it Long Island, and the English who gave it 
the name of Nassau. The change was made with all due 
legal forms in 1693, out of compliment, of course, to King 
William ; but strange to say, though William and Mary 
were popular sovereigns, their loving subjects on the island 
never aeem to have paid the least attention to this act of the 
government, which is believed to have been never repealed, 
and has merely become obsolete by disuse. 


INTRODUCTION. 


XIX 


Suffolk County covers a much larger portion of the isl- 
and than the other two counties. Until recently the eastern 
extremity had a strongly marked and peculiar character of 
its own, a sequestered, rustic region, with a pleasant atmos- 
phere of homely simplicity lingering about it. And it is 
here, at Oyster Ponds, that the narrative of “ TJie Sea 
Lions” opens. “ We write,” observes the author, “of a 
remote period in the galloping history of the State ” — the 
year 1819, when the whaling commerce was at its height, 
and successful whalers were coming and going by the score 
through the waters of Peconic Bay, and when even the 
name of a railroad was all but unknown to the good people 
on its shores. Since that day great changes have been made 
throughout Suffolk County, by the railway which now has 
its eastern terminus on the very ground described in “ The 
Sea Lions ” — and Oyster Ponds has been metamorphosed 
into Orient. Two rival schooners sail on a mysterious voy- 
age to the Antarctic Ocean. One belongs to Oyster Ponds, 
the other to Martha’s Vineyard. Both bear the name of 
The Sea Lion. A newly discovered sealing ground of great 
value has become accidentally known to a certain close-fisted 
old deacon, whose farm lies at Oyster Ponds, a dying sailor 
having revealed the fact to him. But this dying sailor has 
near relatives at Martha’s Vineyard, who have received 
some vague hints of the existence of these Antarctic islands 
and have reason to believe that the old deacon holds the 
key to the secret. When the deacon’s Sea Lion sails from 
Oyster Ponds, the Sea Lion pf Martha’s Vineyard goes to 
sea also. There is an amusing contrast, by the by, be- 
tween the names of these two small ports ; between the 
blunt homeliness of Oyster Ponds and the rather romantic 
sound of Martha’s Vineyard. Vineyard, on the rocky and 
somewhat barren island, there is none, nor ever has been ; 
the only Marthas connected with the ground are those liv- 
ing in its rustic homes. There was once upon a time an 
old Dutchman, a companion of Skipper Block, whose name 
was Martin Wyngaardt, and Block gave his name to the 


XX 


INTRODUCTION. 


island which he discovered. Ere long the English con* 
verted the Dutch name into Vineyard, and the substantial 
old Dutchman himself into a mythical Martha. The ad- 
ventures of the two schooners, from the “ Ponds ” and the 
“Vineyard,” make up the incidents of the narrative. The 
craft, their captains, and crews, are rivals in fair weather, 
but staunch comrades in the grave perils which befall them. 

There is a strong religious under-current in this book. 
Mr. Cooper had always been a sincere believer in the Holy 
Christian Faith. He believed in the necessity of a revela- 
tion from the Supreme Being to a race whose intellect is 
grievously clouded by error and sinful passion. He had 
always yielded a full and honest assent to the great doc- 
trines of Christianity. He considered them entirely con- 
sistent with reason. The mere negations of skepticism 
could never have satisfied his healthful, vigorous mind. He 
took no pleasure in mere subtleties. Clear, strong truths 
were what he craved. He not unfrequently spoke on sa- 
cred subjects, and always with reverence. In the later 
years of his life his religious convictions had been steadily 
increasing in force and in clearness. Experience gave them 
additional power. He had made the Holy Scriptures a 
daily, prayerful study for several years. In the holy serv- 
ices of the church to which he belonged he found a form 
of worship most sublime in reverence, most noble in its 
freedom from superstition, and those services he followed 
regularly from the heart. There were several points con- 
nected with the Christian faith on which he frequently 
spoke in the family circle with the clearest conviction. 

The idea of refusing to worship any deity but one he 
could fully comprehend, he held to be a gross inconsis- 
tency : “ A deity I could fully comprehend would be no God 
to me,” are words put in the mouth of one of his fictitious 
characters. They are words frequently used by himself, 
as an expression of his own feeling and opinion. To reject 
every point of religion which could not be wholly explained 
by human reason, he held to be puerile to a degree that 
might be almost called absurd. 


INTRODUCTION. 


xxi 


In the divinity of the Saviour he believed with unwav- 
ering faith. This article of the ancient creeds he held to 
be of absolutely vital importance ; the corner-stone without 
which the whole fabric must eventually fall. To assume the 
Christian name and reject this tenet he held to be a most 
lamentable intellectual inconsistency. The Lord declared 
Himself to be the Son of God ; the Apostles preached faith 
in Him as the Son of God ; He was crucified for blasphemy 
“ because He made Himself the Son of God.” With these 
facts clearly recorded in the Holy Scriptures consistency 
requires we should yield them implicit faith ; or assume the 
fearful responsibility of entirely rejecting the Scriptures 
themselves as an imposture. 

The fulfillment of prophecy was a subject in which he felt 
a deep interest. The different prophetical predictions re- 
lating to the Jews as a nation, or those connected with our 
Lord’s person and life on earth, running through the Script- 
ures from Genesis to the last passages in the New Testa- 
ment, were in his opinion the most grand of all miracles. 
Where, in books called sacred by other races, could he find 
a prophetical sequence — harmonious, sublime, yet often 
minute in detail, — already partially fulfilled, — and cover- 
ing a period of thousands of years ! 
































































































































































THE SEA LIOHS. 


CHAPTER I. 

When that ’s gone 
He shall drink naught but brine. 

Tempest. 

While there is less of that high polish in America thar 
s obtained by long intercourse with the great world, than 
is to be -found in nearly every European country, there is 
much less positive rusticity also. There, the extremes of 
society are widely separated, repelling rather than attract- 
ing each other ; while among ourselves, the tendency is to 
gravitate towards a common centre. Thus it is, that all 
things in America become subject to a mean law that is 
productive of a mediocrity which is probably much above 
the average of that of most nations ; possibly of all, Eng- 
land excepted ; but which is only a mediocrity, after all. 
In this way, excellence in nothing is justly appreciated, nor 
is it often recognized ; and the suffrages of the nation are 
pretty uniformly bestowed on qualities of a secondary class. 
Numbers have sway, and it is as impossible to resist them 
in deciding on merit, as it is to deny their power in the 
ballot-boxes ; time alone, with its great curative influence, 
supplying the remedy that is to restore the public mind to 
a healthful state, and give equally to the pretender and to 
him who is worthy of renown, his proper place in the pages 
of history. 

The activity of American life, the rapidity and cheapness 
of intercourse, and the migratory habits both have induced, 
leave little of rusticity and local character in any particular 
sections of the country. Distinctions, that an acute ob 
1 


2 


THE SEA LIONS. 


server may detect, do certainly exist between the eastern 
and the western man, between the northerner and the 
southerner, the Yankee and middle states’ man ; the Bos- 
tonian, Manhattanese, and Philadelphian ; the Tuckahoe 
and the Cracker ; the Buckeye or Wolverine, and the Jer- 
sey Blue. Nevertheless, the world cannot probably pro- 
duce another instance of a people who are derived from so 
many different races, and who occupy so large an extent of 
country, who are so homogeneous in appearance, charac- 
ters, and opinions. There is no question that the institu- 
tions have had a material influence in producing this 
uniformity, while they have unquestionably lowered the 
standard to which opinion is submitted, by referring the 
decisions to the many, instead of making the appeal to the 
few, as is elsewhere done. Still, the direction is onward, 
and though it may take time to carve on the social column 
of America that graceful and ornamental capital which it 
forms the just boast of Europe to possess, when the task 
shall be achieved, the work will stand on a base so broad 
as to secure its upright attitude for ages. 

Notwithstanding the general character of identity and 
homogeneity that so strongly marks the picture of American 
society, exceptions are to be met with, in particular dis- 
tricts, that are not only distinct and incontrovertible, but 
which are so peculiar as to be worthy of more than a pass- 
ing remark in our delineations of national customs. Our 
present purpose leads us into one of these secluded dis- 
tricts, and it may be well to commence the narrative of 
certain deeply interesting incidents that it is our intention 
to attempt to portray, by first referring to the place and 
people where and from whom the principal actors in our 
legend had their origin. 

Every one at all familiar with the map of America knows 
the position and general form of the two islands that shelter 
the well-known harbor of the great emporium of the com- 
merce of the country. These islands obtained their names 
from the Dutch, who called them Nassau and Staten ; but 
the English, with little respect for the ancient house whence 
the first of these appellations is derived, and consulting 


THE SEA LIONS. 


• 

only the homely taste which leads them to a practical rather 
than to a poetical nomenclature in all things, have since 
virtually dropped the name of Nassau, altogether substi- 
tuting that of Long Island in its stead. 

Long Island, or the island of Nassau, extends from the 
mouth of the Hudson to the eastern line of Connecticut ; 
forming a sort of sea-wall to protect the whole coast of the 
latter little territory against the waves of the broad At- 
lantic. Three of the oldest New York counties, as their 
names would imply, Kings, Queens, and Suffolk, are on this 
island. Kings was originally peopled by the Dutch, and 
still possesses as many names derived from Holland as from 
England, if its towns, which are of recent origin, be taken 
from the account. Queens is more of a mixture, having 
been early invaded and occupied by adventurers from the 
other side of the Sound ; but Suffolk, which contains nearly, 
if not quite, two thirds of the surface of the whole island, 
is and ever has been in possession of a people derived 
originally from the Puritans of New England. Of these 
three counties, Kings is much the smallest, though, next to 
New York itself, the most populous county in the State ; a 
circumstance that is owing to the fact that two suburban 
offsets of the great emporium, Brooklyn and Williamsburg, 
happen to stand, within its limits, on the waters of what is 
improperly called the East River ; an arm of the sea that 
has obtained this appellation in contradistinction to the 
Hudson, which, as all Manhattanese well know, is as often 
called the North River as by its proper name. In conse- 
quence of these two towns, or suburbs of New York, one 
of which contains nearly a hundred thousand souls, while 
the other must be drawing on towards twenty thousand, 
Kings County has lost all it ever had of peculiar, or local 
character. The same is true of Queens, though in a 
diminished degree ; but Suffolk remains Suffolk still, and 
it is with Suffolk alone that our present legend requires us 
to dsal. Of Suffolk, then, we purpose to say a few words 
by way of preparatory explanation. 

Although it has actually more sea-coast than all the rest 

New York united, Suffolk has but one sea-port that is 


4 


THE SEA LIONS. 


ever mentioned beyond the limits of the county itself. Nor 
is this port one of general commerce, its shipping being 
principally employed in the hardy and manly occupation 
of whaling. As a whaling town, Sag Harbor is the third 
or fourth port in the country, and maintains something like 
that rank in importance. A whaling haven is nothing with- 
out a whaling community. Without the last, it is almost 
hopeless to look for success. New York can, and has often 
fitted whalers for sea, having sought officers in the regular 
whaling ports ; but it has been seldom that the enterprises 
have been rewarded with such returns as to induce a sec- 
ond voyage by the same parties. 

It is as indispensable that a whaler should possess a cer- 
tain esprit de corps , as that a regiment, or a ship of war, 
should be animated by its proper spirit. In the whaling 
communities, this spirit exists to an extent and in a degree 
that is wonderful, when one remembers the great expan- 
sion of this particular branch of trade within the last five- 
and-twenty years. It may be a little lessened of late, but 
at the time of which we are writing, or about the year 
1820, there was scarcely an individual who followed this 
particular calling out of the port of Sag Harbor, whose 
general standing on board ship was not as well known to 
all the women and girls of the place, as it was to his ship- 
mates. Success in taking the whale was a thing that made 
itself felt in every fibre of the prosperity of the town ; and 
it was just as natural that the single-minded population of 
that part of Suffolk should regard the bold and skillful har- 
pooner, or lancer, with favor, as it is for the* belle at a 
watering-place to bestow her smiles on one oi the young 
heroes of Contreras or Churubusco. His peculiar merit, 
whether with the oar, lance, or harpoon, is bruited about, 
as well as the number of whales he may have succeeded in 
• s making fast to,” or those which he caused to “ spout 
blood.” It is true that the great extension of the trade 
within the last twenty years, by drawing so many from a 
distance into its pursuits, has in a degree lessened this 
local interest and local knowledge of character ; but at the 
time of which we are about to write, both were at their 


THE SEA LIONS. 


5 


height, and Nantucket itself had not more of this “ intelli- 
gence office ” propensity, or more of the true whaling esprit 
de corps , than were to be found in the district of country 
that surrounded Sag Harbor. 

Long Island forks at its eastern end, and may be said to 
have two extremities. One of these, which is much the 
shortest of the two legs thus formed, goes by the name of 
Oyster Pond Point ; while the other, that stretches much 
farther in the direction of Block Island, is the well-known 
cape called Montauk. Within the fork lies Shelter Island, 
so named from the snug berth it occupies. Between Shelter 
Island and the longest or southern prong of the fork, are 
the waters which compose the haven of Sag Harbor, an 
estuary of some extent; while a narrow but deep arm of 
the sea separates this island from the northern prong, that 
terminates at Oyster Pond. 

The name of Oyster Pond Point was formerly applied 
to a long, low, fertile and pleasant reach of land, that ex- 
tended several miles from the point itself, westward, to- 
wards the spot where the two prongs of the fork united. 
It was not easy, during the first quarter of the present 
century, to find a more secluded spot on the whole island, 
than Oyster Pond. Recent enterprises have since con- 
verted it into the terminus of a railroad ; and Green Port, 
once called Sterling, is a name well known to . travelers 
between New York and Boston ; but in the earlier part of 
the present century it seemed just as likely that the Santa 
Casa of Loretto should take a new flight and descend on 
the point, as that the improvement that has actually been 
made should in truth occur at that out-of-the-way place. 
It required, indeed, the keen eye of a railroad projector to 
bring this spot in connection with anything ; nor could it 
be done without having recourse to the water by which it 
is almost surrounded. Using the last, it is true, means 
have been foun 1 to place it in a line between two of the 
great marts of the country, and thus to put an end to all 
its seclusion, its simplicity, its peculiarities, and we had 
almost said, its happiness. 

It is to us ever a painful sight to see the rustic virtues 


6 


THE SEA LIONS. 


rudely thrown aside by the intrusion of what are termed 
improvements. A railroad is certainly a capital invention 
for the traveler, but it may be questioned if it is of any 
other benefit than that of pecuniary convenience to the 
places through which it passes. How many delightful 
hamlets, pleasant villages, and even tranquil county towns, 
are losing their primitive characters for simplicity and con- 
tentment, by the passage of these fiery trains, that drag 
after them a sort of bastard elegance, a pretension that is 
destructive of peace of mind, and an uneasy desire in all 
who dwell by the way-side, to pry into the mysteries of 
the whole length and breadth of the region it traverses ! 

We are writing of the year of our Lord one thousand 
eight hundred and nineteen. In that day, Oyster Pond 
was, in one of the best acceptations of the word, a rural 
district. It is true that its inhabitants were accustomed 
to the water, and to the sight of vessels, from the two- 
decker to the little shabby-looking craft that brought ashes 
from town, to meliorate the sandy lands of Suffolk. Only 
five years before, an English squadron had lain in Gardi- 
ner’s Bay, here pronounced “ Gar’ner’s,” watching the Race, 
or eastern outlet of . the Sound, with a view to cut off the 
trade and annoy their enemy. That game is up, for ever. 
No hostile squadron, English, French, Dutch, or all united, 
will ever again blockade an American port for any serious 
length of time, the young Hercules passing too rapidly 
from the gristle into the bone, any longer to suffer antics 
of this nature to be played in front of his cradle. But 
such was not his condition in the war of 1812, and the 
good people of Oyster Pond had become familiar with 
the checkered sides of two-deck ships, and the venerable 
and beautiful ensign of Old England, as it floated above 
them. 

Nor was it only by these distant views, and by means 
of hostilities, that the good folk on Oyster Pond were ac- 
quainted with vessels. New York is necessary to all on 
the coast, both as a market and as a place to procure sup- 
plies ; and every creek, or inlet, or basin of any sort, 
within a hundred leagues of it, is sure to possess one or 


THE SEA LIONS. 


more craft that ply between the favorite haven and the 
particular spot in question. Thus was it with Oyster 
Pond. There is scarce a better harbor on the whole 
American coast, than that which the narrow arm of the 
sea that divides the Point from Shelter Island presents ; 
and even in the simple times of which we are writing, 
Sterling had its two or three coasters, such as they were. 
But the true maritime character of Oyster Pond, as well 
as that of all Suffolk, was derived from the whalers, and 
its proper nucleus was across the estuary, at Sag Harbor. 
Thither the youths of the whole region resorted for em- 
ployment, and to advance their fortunes, and generally 
with such success as is apt to attend enterprise, industry, 
and daring, when exercised with energy in a pursuit with 
moderate gains. None became rich, in the strict significa- 
tion of the term, though a few got to be in reasonably afflu- 
ent circumstances ; many were placed altogether at their 
ease, and more were made humbly comfortable. A farm 
in America is well enough for the foundation of family 
support, but it rarely suffices for all the growing wants of 
these days of indulgence, and of a desire to enjoy so much 
of that which was formerly left to the undisputed posses- 
sion of the unquestionably rich. A farm, with a few hun- 
dreds per annum, derived from other sources, makes a good 
base of comfort ; and if the hundreds are converted into 
thousands, your farmer, or agriculturalist, becomes a man 
not only at his ease, but a proprietor of some importance. 
The farms on Oyster Pond were neither very extensive, 
nor had they owners of large incomes to support them ; 
on the contrary, most of them were made to support their 
owners ; a thing that is possible, even in America, with in- 
dustry, frugality, and judgment. In order, however, that 
the names of places we may have occasion to use shall be 
understood, it may be well to be a little more particular in 
our preliminary explanations. 

The reader knows that we are now writing of Suffolk 
County, Long Island, New York. He also knows that 
our opening scene is to be on the shorter, or most northern 
gf the two prongs of that fork which divides the eastern 


8 


THE SEA LiONS. 


end of this island, giving it what are properly two capes. 
The smallest territorial division that is known 10 the laws 
of New York, in rural districts, is the “ township,” as it is 
called. These townships are usually larger than the Eng- 
lish parish, corresponding more properly with the French 
canton. They vary, however, greatly in size, some con- 
taining as much as a hundred square miles, which is the 
largest size, while others do not contain more than a tenth 
of that surface. 

The township in which the northern prong, or point of 
Long Island, lies, is named South old, and includes not 
only all of the long, low, narrow land that then went by 
the common names of Oyster Pond, Sterling, etc., but 
several islands, also, which stretch off in the Sound, as 
well as a broader piece of territory, near Riverhead. 
Oyster Pond, which is the portion of the township that 
lies on the “ point,” is, or was , for we write of a remote 
period in the galloping history of the State, only a part of 
Southold, and probably was not then a name known in the 
laws at all. 

We have a wish, also, that this name should be pro- 
nounced properly. It is not called Oyster Pond , as the 
uninitiated would be very apt to get it, but Oyster Pimd, 
the last word having a sound similar to that of the cock- 
ney’s “ pound,” in his “ two pund two.” This discrepancy 
between the spelling and the pronunciation of proper names 
is agreeable to us, for it shows that a people are not put in 
leading strings by pedagogues, and that they make use of 
their own, in their own way. We remember how great 
was our satisfaction once, on entering Holmes’s Hole, a 
well-known bay in this very vicinity, in our youth, to hear 
a boatman call the port “ Hum’ses Hull.” It is getting to 
be so rare to meet with an American, below the higher 
classes, who will consent to cast this species of veil before 
his school-day acquisitions, that we acknowledge it gives 
us pleasure to hear such good, homely, old-fashioned Eng- 
lish as “ Gar’ner’s Island,” “ Hum’ses Hull,” and “ Ouster 
Pund.” 

This plainness of speech was not the only proof of tho 


THE SEA LIONS. 


simplicity of former days that was to be found in Suffolk, 
in the first quarter of the century. The eastern end of 
Long Island lies so much out of the track of the rest of the 
world, that even the new railroad cannot make much im- 
pression on its inhabitants, who get their pigs and poultry, 
butter and eggs, a little earlier to market than in the days 
of the stage-wagons, it is true, but they fortunately, as yet, 
bring little back except it be the dross that sets everything 
in motion, whether it be by rail, or through the sands, in 
the former toilsome mode. 

The season, at the precise moment when we desire to 
take the reader with us to Oyster Pond, was in the de- 
lightful month of September, when the earlier promises of 
the year are fast maturing into performance. Although 
Suffolk, as a whole, can scarcely be deemed a productive 
county, being generally of a thin, light soil, and still covered 
with a growth of small wood, it possesses, nevertheless, 
spots of exceeding fertility. A considerable portion of the 
northern prong of the fork has this latter character, and 
Oyster Pond is a sort of garden compared with much of 
the sterility that prevails around it. Plain, but respectable 
dwellings, with numerous out-buildings, orchards, and fruit- 
trees, fences carefully preserved, a painstaking tillage, 
good roads, and here and there a “ meeting-house,” gave 
the fork an air of rural and moral beauty that, aided by 
the water by which it was so nearly surrounded, contrib- 
uted greatly to relieve the monotony of so dead a level. 
There were heights in view, on Shelter Island, and bluffs 
towards Riverhead, which, if they would not attract much 
attention in Switzerland, were by no means overlooked in 
Suffolk. In a word, both the season and the place were 
charming, though most of the flowers had already faded ; 
and the apple, and the pear, and the peach, were taking the 
places of the inviting cherry. Fruit abounded, notwith- 
standing the close vicinity of the district to salt water, the 
airs from the sea being broken, or somewhat tempered, by 
the land that lay to the southward. 

We have spoken of the coasters that ply between the 
emporium and all the creeks and bays of the Sound, as 


10 


THE SEA LIONS. 


well as of the numberless rivers that find an outlet for their 
waters between Sandy Hook and Rockaway. Wharves 
were constructed, at favorable points, inside the prong, 
and occasionally a sloop was seen at them loading its truck, 
or discharging its ashes or street manure, the latter being 
a very common return cargo for a Long Island coaster. 
At one wharf, however, now lay a vessel of a different 
mold, and one which, though of no great size, was mani- 
festly intended to go outside. This was a schooner that 
had been recently launched, and which had advanced no 
farther in its first equipment than to get in its two princi- 
pal spars, the rigging of which hung suspended over the 
mast-heads, in readiness to be “ set up ” for the first time. 
The day being Sunday, work was suspended, and this so 
much the more, because the owner of the vessel was a cer- 
tain Deacon Pratt, Who dwelt in a house within half a mile 
of the wharf, and who was also the proprietor of three 
several parcels of land in that neighborhood, each of which 
had its own buildings and conveniences, and was properly 
enough dignified with the name of a farm. To be sure, 
neither of these farms was very large, their acres united 
amounting to but little more than two hundred ; but, owing 
to their condition, the native richness of the soil, and the 
mode of turning them to account, they had made Deacon 
Pratt a warm man, for Suffolk. 

There are two great species of deacons ; for we suppose 
they must all be referred to the same genera. One species 
belong to the priesthood, and become priests and bishops ; 
passing away, as priests and bishops are apt to do, with 
more or less of the savor of godliness. The other species 
are purely laymen, and are sui generis. They are, ex offi- 
cio, the most pious men in a neighborhood, as they some- 
times are, as it would seem to us, ex officio , also the most 
grasping and mercenary. As we are not in the secrets of 
the sects to which these lay deacons belong, we shall not 
presume to pronounce whether the individual is elevated 
to the deaconate because he is prosperous, in a worldly 
sense, or whether the prosperity is a consequence of the 
deaconate ; but that the two usually go together is quite 


THE SEA LIONS. 


li 


certain ; which being the cause, and which the effect, we 
leave to wiser heads to determine. 

Deacon Pratt was no exception to the rule. A tighter 
fisted sinner did not exist in the county than this pious 
soul, who certainly not only wore, but wore out the “ form 
of godliness,” while he was devoted, heart and hand, to the 
daily increase of worldly gear. No one spoke disparag- 
ingly of the de&con, notwithstanding. So completely had 
he got to be interwoven with the church — “meeting,” we 
ought to say — in that vicinity, that speaking disparagingly 
of him would have appeared like assailing Christianity. It 
is true, that many an unfortunate fellow-citizen in Suffolk 
had been made to feel how close was the grip of his hand, 
when he found himself in its grasp ; but there is a way of 
practicing the most ruthless extortion, that serves not only 
to deceive the world, but which would really seem to mis- 
lead the extortioner himself. Phrases take the place of 
deeds, sentiments those of facts, and grimaces those of be- 
nevolent looks, so ingeniously and so impudently, that the 
wronged often fancy that they are the victims of a severe 
dispensation of Providence, when the truth would have 
shown that they were simply robbed. 

We do not mean, however, that Deacon Pratt was a 
robber. He was merely a hard man in the management 
of his affairs ; never cheating, in a direct sense, but seldom 
conceding a cent to generous impulses, or to the duties of 
kind. He was a widower, and childless, circumstances 
that rendered his love of gain still less pardonable ; for 
many a man who is indifferent to money on his own ac- 
count, will toil and save to lay up hoards for those who 
are to come after him. The deacon had only a niece to 
inherit his effects, unless he might choose to step beyond 
that degree of consanguinity, and bestow a portion of his 
means on cousins. The church — or, to be more literal, 
the “ meeting ” — had an eye on his resources, however ; 
and it was whispe'red it had actually succeeded, by means 
known to itself, in squeezing out of his tight grasp no less 
a sum than one hundred dollars, as a donation to a certain 


12 


THE SEA LIONS. 


theological college. It was conjectured by some persons 
that this was only the beginning of a religious liberality, 
and that the excellent and godly-minded deacon would 
bestow most of his property in a similar way, when the 
moment should come that it could be no longer of any use 
to himself. This opinion was much in favor with divers 
devout females of the deacon’s congregation, who had 
daughters of their own, and who seldom failed to conclude 
their observations on this interesting subject with some 
such remark as, “ Well, in that case, and it seems to me 
that everything points that way, Mary Pratt will get no 
more than any other poor man’s daughter.” 

Little did Mary, the only child of Israel Pratt, an elder 
brother of the deacon, think of all this. She had been left 
an orphan in her tenth year, both parents dying within a 
few months of each other, and had lived beneath her 
uncle’s roof for nearly ten more years, until use and natural 
affection, and the customs of the country, had made her 
feel absolutely at home there. A less interested, or less 
selfish being than Mary Pratt, never existed. In this re- 
spect she was the very antipodes of her uncle, who often 
stealthily rebuked her for her charities and acis of neigh- 
borly kindness, which he was wont to term waste. But 
Mary kept the even tenor of her way, seemingly not hear- 
ing such remarks, and doing her duty quietly, and in all 
humility. 

Suffolk was settled originally by emigrants from New 
England, and the character of its people is, to this hour, 
of modified New England habits and notions. Now one 
of the marked peculiarities of Connecticut is an indisposi- 
tion to part with anything without a quid pro quo. Those 
little services, offerings, and conveniences that are else- 
where parted with without a thought of remuneration, go 
regularly upon the day-book, and often reappear on a “ set- 
tlement,” years after they have been forgotten by those 
who received the favors. Even the man who keeps a car- 
riage will let it out for hire ; and the manner in which 
money is accepted, and even asked for by persons in easy 


THE SEA LIONS. 


16 


circumstances, and for things that would be gratuitous in 
the Middle States, often causes disappointment, and some- 
times disgust. In this particular, Scottish and Swiss thrift, 
both notorious, and the latter particularly so, are nearly 
equaled by New England thrift ; more especially in the 
close estimate of the value of services rendered. So 
marked, indeed, is this practice of looking for requitals, 
that even the language is infected with it. Thus, should a 
person pass a few months by invitation with a friend, his 
visit is termed “ boarding ; ” it being regarded as a matter 
of course that he* pays his way. It would scarcely be safe, 
indeed, without the precaution of “ passing receipts ” on 
quitting, for one to stay any time in a New England dwell- 
ing, unless prepared to pay for his board. The free and 
frank habits that prevail among relatives and friends else- 
where, are nearly unknown there, every service having its 
price. These customs are exceedingly repugnant to all 
who have been educated in different notions ; yet are they 
not without their redeeming qualities, that might be pointed 
out to advantage, though our limits will not permit us, at 
this moment, so to do. 

Little did Mary Pratt suspect the truth ; but habit, or 
covetdusness, or some vague expectation that the girl might 
yet contract a marriage that would enable him to claim all 
his advances, had induced the deacon never to bestow a 
cent on her education, or dress, or pleasures of any sort, 
that the money was not regularly charged against her, in 
that nefarious work that he called his “ day-book.” As 
for the self-respect, and the feelings of caste, which pre- 
vent a gentleman from practicing any of these tradesmen’s 
tricks, the deacon knew nothing of them. He would have 
set the man down as a fool who deferred to any notions so 
unprofitable. With him, not only every man , but every 
thing “ had its price, and usually it was a good price, too. 
At the very moment when our tale opens there stood 
charged in his book, against his unsuspecting and affection- 
ate niece, items in the way of schooling, dress, board, and 
pocket-money, that amounted to the considerable sum o' ! 


14 


THE SEA LIONS. 


one thousand dollars, money fairly expended. The deacon 
was only intensely mean and avaricious, while he was as 
honest as the day. Not a cent was overcharged ; and to 
own the truth, Mary was so great a favorite with him, that 
most of his charges against her were rather of a reasonable 
rate than otherwise. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


i6 




CHAPTER II. 

Marry, 1 saw your niece do more favors 
To the count’s serving-man, than ever she bestowed 
Upon me ; I saw it i’ the orchard. 

Twelfth Night. 

On the Sunday in question, Deacon Pratt went to meet- 
ing as usual, the building in which divine service was held 
that day, standing less than two miles from his residence, 
but, instead of remaining for the afternoon’s preaching, as 
was his wont, he got into his one-horse chaise, the vehicle 
then in universal use among the middle classes, though now 
so seldom seen, and skirred away homeward as fast as an 
active, well-fed and powerful switch-tailed mare could draw 
him ; the animal being accompanied in her rapid progress 
by a colt of some three months’ existence. The residence 
of the deacon was unusually inviting for a man of his nar 
row habits. It stood on the edge of a fine apple orchard, 
having a door-yard of nearly two acres in its front. This 
door-yard, which had been twice mown that summer, was 
prettily embellished with flowers, and was shaded by four 
rows of noble cherry-trees. The house itself was of wood, 
as' is almost uniformly the case in Suffolk, where little stone 
is to be found, and where brick constructions are apt to be 
thought damp; but it was a respectable edifice, with five 
windows in front, and of two stories. The siding was of 
unpainted cedar shingles ; and, although the house had 
been erected long previously to the Resolution, the siding 
had been renewed but once, about ten years before the 
opening of our tale, and the whole building was in a per- 
fect state of repair. The thrift of the deacon rendered 
him careful, and he was thoroughly convinced of the truth 
of the familiar adage which tells us that “ a stitch in time 
saves nine.” All around the house and farm was in per- 


10 


THE SEA LIONS. 


feet order, proving the application of the saying. As for 
the view, it was sufficiently pleasant, the house having its 
frrnt towards the east, while its end windows looked, the 
one set in the direction of the Sound, and the other in that 
of the arm of the sea, which belongs properly to Peconic 
Bay, we believe. All this water, some of which was visi- 
ble over points, and among islands, together with a smiling 
and fertile, though narrow stretch of foreground, could not 
fail of making an agreeable landscape. 

It was little, however, that Deacon Pratt thought of 
views, or beauty of any sort, as the mare reached the open 
gate of his own abode. Mary was standing in the stoop, 
or porch of the house, and appeared to be anxiously await- 
ing her uncle’s return. The latter gave the reins to a 
black, one who was no longer a slave, but who was a de- 
scendant of some of the ancient slaves of the Pratts, and 
in that character consented still to dawdle about the place, 
working for half price. On alighting, the uncle approached 
the niece with somewhat of interest in his manner. 

“ Well, Mary,” said the former, “ how does he get on, 
now ? ” 

“ Oh ! my dear sir, he cannot possibly live, I think, and 
I do most earnestly entreat that you will let me send across 
to the Harbor for Dr. Sage.” 

By the Harbor was meant Sag’s, and the physician named 
was one of merited celebrity in old Suffolk. So healthy 
was the country in general, and so simple were the habits 
of the people, that neither lawyer nor physician was to bo 
found in every hamlet, as is the case to-day. Both were 
to be had at Riverhead, as well as at Sag Harbor ; but if 
a man called out “ Squire,” or “ Doctor,” in the high- 
ways of Suffolk, sixteen men did not turn round to reply, 
as is said to be the case in other regions ; one half answer- 
ing to the one appellation, and the second half to the other. 
The deacon had two objections to yielding to his niece’s 
earnest request ; the expense being one, though it was not, 
in this instance, the greatest ; there was another reason 
that he kept to himself, but which will appear as our nar- 
rative proceeds. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


i r 


A few weeks previously to the Sunday in question, a 
Siea-going vessel, inward bound, had brought up in Gardi- 
ner's Bay, which is a usual anchorage for all sorts of craft. 
A worn-out and battered seaman had been put ashore on 
Oyster Pond, by a boat from this vessel, which sailed to 
the westward soon after, proceeding most probably to New 
York. The stranger was not only well advanced in life, 
but he was obviously wasting away with disease. 

The account given of himself by this seaman was suffi- 
ciently explicit. He was born on Martha’s Vineyard, but, 
as is customary with the boys of that island, he had left 
home in his twelfth year, and had now been absent from 
the place of his birth a little more than half a century. 
Conscious of the decay which beset him, and fully con- 
vinced that his days were few and numbered, the seaman, 
who called himself Tom Daggett, had felt a desire to close 
his eyes in the place where they had first been opened to 
the light of day. He had persuaded the commander of 
the craft mentioned, to bring him from the West Indies, 
and to put him ashore as related, the Vineyard being only 
a hundred miles or so to the eastward of Oyster Pond 
Point. He trusted to luck to give him the necessary op- 
portunity of overcoming these last hundred miles. 

Daggett was poor, as he admitted, as well as friendless 
and unknown. He had with him, nevertheless, a substan- 
tial sea-chest, one of those that the sailors of that day 
uniformly used in merchant- vessels, a man-of-war compel- 
ling them to carry their clothes in bags, for the convenience 
of compact stowage. The chest of Daggett, however, was 
a regular inmate of the forecastle, and, from its appear- 
ance, had made almost as many voyages as its owner. The 
last, indeed, was heard to say that he had succeeded in sav- 
ing it from no less than three shipwrecks. It was a rea- 
sonably heavy chest, though its contents, when opened, did 
not seem to be of any very great value. 

A few hours after landing, this man had made a bargain 
with a middle-aged widow, in very humble circumstances, 
and who dwelt quite near to the residence of Deacon Pratt, 
to receive Hm as a temporary inmate ; or, until he could 
2 


18 


THE SEA LIONS. 


get a “ chance across to the Vineyard.” At first, Daggett 
kept about, and was much in the open air. While able to 
walk, he met the deacon, and singular, nay, unaccountable 
as it seemed to the niece, the uncle soon contracted a 
species of friendship for, not to say intimacy with, this 
stranger. In the first place, the deacon was a little par- 
ticular in not having intimates among the necessitous, and 
the Widow White soon let it be known that her guest had 
not even a “red cent.” He had chattels, however, that 
were of some estimation among seamen ; and Roswell Gar- 
diner, or “ Gar’ner,” as he was called, the young seaman 
par excellence of the Point, one who had been not only a 
whaling, but who had also been a sealing, and who at that 
moment was on board the deacon’s schooner, in the capacity 
of master, had been applied to for advice and assistance. 
By the agency of Mr. Gar'ner, as the young mate was 
then termed, sundry palms, sets of sail-needles, a fid or two, 
and various other similar articles, that obviously could no 
longer be of any use to Daggett, were sent across to the 
“ Harbor,” and disposed of there, to advantage, among the 
many seamen of the port. By these means the stranger 
was, for a few weeks, enabled to pay his way, the board he 
got being both poor and cheap. 

A much better result attended this intercourse with 
Gardiner, than that of raising the worn-out seaman’s im- 
mediate ways and means. Between Mary Pratt and Ros- 
well Gardiner there existed an intimacy of long standing 
for their years, as well as of some peculiar features, to 
which there will be occasion to advert hereafter. Mary 
was the very soul of charity in all its significations, and 
thus Gardiner knew. When, therefore, Daggett became 
really necessitous, in the way of comforts that even money 
could not command beneath the roof of the Widow White, 
the young man let the fact be known to the deacon’s niece, 
who immediately provided sundry delicacies that were ac- 
ceptable to the palate of even disease. As for her uncle, 
nothing was at first said to him on the subject. Although 
his intimacy with Daggett went on * increasing, and they 
were daily more and more together, in long and secret con- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


i & 

ference, not a suggestion was ever made by the deacon in 
the way of contributing to his new friend’s comforts. To 
own the truth, to give was the last idea that ever occurred 
to this man’s thoughts. 

Mary Pratt was observant, and of a mind so constituted, 
that its observations usually led her to safe and accurate 
deductions. Great was the surprise of all on the Point 
when it became known that Deacon Pratt had purchased 
and put into the water, the new sea-going craft that was 
building on speculation, at Southold. Not only had he 
done this, but he had actually bought some half-worn cop- 
per, and had it placed on the schooner’s bottom, as high as 
the bends, ere he had her launched. While the whole 
neighborhood was “ exercised ” with conjectures on the 
motive which could induce the deacon to become a ship- 
owner in his age, Mary did not fail to impute it to some 
secret but powerful influence that the sick stranger had 
obtained over him. He now spent nearly half his time in 
private communications with Daggett ; and, on more than 
one occasion, when the niece had taken some light article 
of food over for the use of the last, she found him and her 
uncle examining one or two dirty and well-w f orn charts of 
the ocean. As she entered, the conversation invariably 
was changed ; nor was Mrs. White ever permitted to be 
present at one of these secret conferences. 

Not only was the schooner purchased and coppered, and 
launched, and preparations made to fit her for sea, but 
“Young Gar’ner” was appointed to command her. As 
respects Roswell Gardiner, or “ Gar’ner,” as it would be 
almost thought a breach of decorum, in Suffolk, not to call 
him, there was no mystery. Six-and-twenty years before 
the opening of our legend, he had been born on Oyster 
Pond itself, and of one of its best families. Indeed, he 
was known to be a descendant of Lyon Gardiner, that en- 
gineer who had been sent to the settlement of the lords 
Saye and Seal, and Brook, since called Saybrook, near 
two centuries before, to lay out a town and a fort. This 
Lyon Gardiner had purchased of the Indians the island in 
that neighborhood which still bears his name. This estab- 


20 


THE SEA LIONS. 


« 

lishment on the island was made in 1639 ; and now, at an 
interval of two hundred and nine years, it is in possession 
of its ninth owner, all having been of the name and blood 
of its original patentee. This is great antiquity for Amer- 
ica, which, while it has produced many families of greater 
wealth, and renown, and importance, than that of the Gar- 
diners, has seldom produced any of more permanent local 
respectability. This is a feature in society that we so 
much love to see, and which is so much endangered by 
the uncertain and migratory habits of the people, that we 
pause a moment to record this instance of stability, so 
pleasing and so commendable, in an age and country of 
changes. 

The descendants of any family of two centuries’ standing, 
will, as a matter of course, be numerous. There are excep- 
tions, certainly ; but such is the rule. Thus is it with 
Lyon Gardiner, and his progeny, who are now to be num- 
bered in scores, including persons in all classes of life, 
though it carries with it a stamp of caste to be known in 
Suffolk as having come direct from the loins of old Lyon 
Gardiner. Roswell, of that name, if not of that ilk, the 
island then being the sole property of David Johnson Gar- 
diner, the predecessor and brother of its present proprietor, 
was allowed to have this claim, though it would exceed our 
genealogical knowledge to point out the precise line by 
which this descent was claimed. Young Roswell was of 
respectable blood on both sides, without being very bril- 
liantly connected, or rich. On the contrary, early left an 
orphan, fatherless and motherless, as was the case with 
Mary Pratt, he had been taken from a country academy 
when only fifteen, and sent to sea, that he might make his 
own way in the world. Hitherto, his success had not been 
of a very flattering character. He had risen, notwithstand- 
ing, to be the chief mate of a whaler, and bore an excellent 
reputation among the people of Suffolk. Had it only been 
a year or two later, when speculation took hold of the 
whaling business in a larger way, he would not have had 
the least difficulty in obtaining a ship. As it was, however, 
great was his delight when Deacon Pratt engaged him as 


T11E SEA LIONS. 


*21 


master of the new schooner, which had been already named 
the “Sea Lion” — or “Sea Lyon,” as Roswell sometimes 
affected to spell the word, in honor of his old progenitor, 
the engineer. 

Mary Pratt had noted all these proceedings, partly with 
pain, partly with pleasure, but always with great interest. 
It pained her to find her uncle, in the decline of life, en- 
gaging in a business about which he knew nothing. If 
pained her, still more, to see one whom she loved from 
habit, if not from moral sympathies, wasting the few hours 
that remained for preparing for the last great change, in 
attempts to increase possessions that were already much 
more than sufficient for his wants. This consideration, in 
particular, deeply grieved Mary Pratt ; for she was pro- 
foundly pious, with a conscience that was so sensitive as 
materially to interfere with her happiness, as will presently 
be shown, while her uncle was merely a deacon. It is one 
thing to be a deacon, and another to be devoted to the love 
of God, and to that love of our species which we are told 
is the consequence of a love of the Deity. The two are 
not incompatible ; neither are they identical. This Mary 
had been made to see, in spite of all her wishes to be blind 
as respects the particular subject from whom she had learned 
the unpleasant lesson. The pleasure felt by our heroine, 
for such we now announce Mary Pratt to be, was derived 
from the preferment bestowed on Roswell Gardiner. She 
had many a palpitation of the heart when she heard of his 
good conduct as a seaman, as she always did whenever she 
heard his professional career alluded to at all. On this 
point, Roswell was without spot, as all Suffolk knew and 
confessed. On Oyster Pond, he was regarded as a species 
of sea lion himself, so numerous and so exciting were the 
incidents that were related of his prowess among the 
whales. But there was a dark cloud before all these glo- 
ries, in the eyes of Mary Pratt, which for two years had 
disinclined her to listen to the young man’s tale of love, 
which had induced her to decline accepting a hand that- 
had now been offered to her, with a seaman’s ardor, a sea- 
man’s frankness, and a seaman’s sincerity, some twenty times 


22 


THE SEA LIONS. 


at least, which had induced her to struggle severely with 
her own heart, which she had long found to be a powerful 
ally of her suitor. That cloud came from a species of in- 
fidelity that is getting to be so widely spread in America as 
no longer to work in secret, but which lifts its head boldly 
among us, claiming openly to belong to one of the numer- 
ous sects of the land. Mary Had reason to think that Ros- 
well Gardiner denied the divinity of Christ, while he pro- 
fessed to honor and defer to him as a man far elevated 
above all other men, and as one whose blood had purchased 
the redemption of his race ! • 

We will take this occasion to say that our legend is not 
polemical in any sense, and that we have no intention to 
enter into discussions or arguments connected with this 
subject, beyond those that we may conceive to be neces- 
sary to illustrate the picture which it is our real aim to 
draw — that of a confiding, affectionate, nay, devoted wom- 
an’s heart, in conflict with a deep sense of religious duty. 

Still, Mary rejoiced that Roswell Gardiner was to com- 
mand the Sea Lion. Whither this little vessel, a schooner 
of about one hundred and forty tons measurement, was to 
sail, she had not the slightest notion ; but, go where it 
might, her thoughts and prayers were certain to accompany 
it. These are woman’s means of exerting influence, and 
who shall presume to say that they are without results, and 
useless? On the contrary, we believe them to be most 
efficacious ; and thrice happy is the man who, as he treads 
the mazes and wiles of the world, goes accompanied by 
the petitions of such gentle and pure-minded beings at 
home, as seldom think of approaching the throne of Grace 
without also thinking of him and of his necessities. The 
Romanists say, and say it rightly too, could one only be- 
lieve in their efficacy, that the prayers they offer up in be- 
half of departed friends, are of the most endearing nat- 
ure ; but it would be difficult to prove that petitions for 
the souls of the dead can demonstrate greater interest, or 
bind the parties more closely together in the unity of love, 
than those that are constantly offered up in behalf of the 
living. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


23 


The interest that Mary Pratt felt in Roswell’s success 
needs little explanation. In all things he was most agree- 
able to her, but in the one just mentioned. Their ages, 
their social positions, their habits, their orphan condition, 
even their prejudices — and who that dwells aside from the 
world is without them, when most of those who encounter 
its collisions still cherish them so strongly ? — all united to 
render them of interest to each other. Nor was Deacon 
Pratt at all opposed to the connection ; on the contrary, he 
appeared rather to favor it. 

The objections came solely from Mary, whose heart 
was nearly ready to break each time that she was required 
to urge them. As for the uncle, it is not easy to say 
what could induce him to acquiesce in, to favor indeed, 
the addresses to his niece and nearest relative, of one who 
was known not to possess five hundred dollars in the world. 
As his opinions on this subject were well known to all on 
Oyster Pond, they had excited a good deal of speculation ; 
“ exercising ” the whole neighborhood, as was very apt to 
be the case whenever anything occurred in the least out of 
the ordinary track. The several modes of reasoning were 
something like these : — 

Some were of opinion that the deacon foresaw a success- 
ful career to, and eventual prosperity in the habits and en- 
terprise of, the young mate, and that he was willing to 
commit to his keeping, not only his niece, but the three 
farms, his “ money at use,” and certain shares he was 
known to own in a whaler and no less than three coasters, 
as well as an interest in a store at Southold ; that is to say, 
to commit them all to the keeping of “ young Gar’ner ” 
when he was himself dead ; for no one believed he would 
part with more than Mary, in his own lifetime. 

Others fancied he was desirous of getting the orphan off 
his hands, in the easiest possible way, that he might make 
a bequest of his whole estate to the Theological Institution 
that had been coquetting with him now, for several years, 
through its recognized agents, and to which he had already 
made the liberal donation of one hundred dollars. It was 
«rell ascertained that the agents of that Institution openly 


THE SEA LIONS. 


21 

talked of getting Deacon Pratt to sit for his portrait, m 
order that it might be suspended among those of others of 
its benefactors. 

A third set reasoned differently from both the foregoing. 
The “ Gar’ners ” were a better family than the Pratts, and 
the deacon being so “ well to do,” it was believed by these 
persons that he was disposed to unite money with name, 
and thus give to his family consideration, from a source 
that was somewhat novel in its history. This class of rea- 
soners was quite small, however, and mainly consisted of 
those who had rarely been off of Oyster Pond, and who 
passed their days with “ Gar’ner’s Island ” directly before 
their eyes. A few of the gossips of this class pretended to 
say that their own young sailor stood next in succession 
after the immediate family actually in possession should 
run out, of which there was then some prospect ; and that 
the deacon, sly fellow, knew all about it ! For this sur- 
mise, to prevent useless expectations in the reader, it may 
be well to say at once, there was no foundation whatever, 
Roswell’s connection with the owner of the island being 
much too remote to give him any chance of succeeding to 
that estate, or to anything else that belonged to him. 

There was a fourth and last set, among those who spec- 
ulated on the deacon’s favor towards “ young Gar’ner,” 
and these were they who fancied that the old man had 
opened his heart towards the young couple, and was dis- 
posed to render a deserving youth and a beloved niece 
happy. This was the smallest class of all ; and, what is a 
little remarkable, it contained only the most reckless and 
least virtuous of all those who dwelt on Oyster Pond. 
The parson of the parish, or the Pastor as he was usually 
termed, belonged to the second category, that good man 
being firmly impressed that most, if not all of Deacon 
Pratt’s worldly effects would eventually go to help prop- 
agate the gospel. 

Such was the state of things when the deacon returned 
from meeting, as related in the opening chapter. At his 
niece’s suggestion of sending to the Harbor for Dr. Sage, 
had demurred, not only on account of the expense, but 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Z5 

for a still more cogent reason. To tell the truth, ho was 
exceedingly distrustful of any one’s being admitted to a 
communication with Daggett, who had revealed to him mat- 
ters that he deemed to be of great importance, but who 
still detained the key to his most material mystery. Never- 
theless, decency, to say nothing of the influence of what 
“ folks would say,” the Archimedean lover of all society of 
puritanical origin, exhorted him to consent to his niece’s 
proposal. 

“ It is such a roundabout road to get to the Harbor, 
Mary,” the uncle slowly objected, after a pause. 

“ Boats often go there, an<j return in a few hours.” 

" “Yes, yes — boats; but I’m not certain it ^s lawful to 
work boats of a Sabbath, child.” 

“ I believe, sir, it was deemed lawful to do good on the 
Lord’s day.” 

“ Yes, if a body was certain it would do any good. To 
be sure, Sago is a capital doctor — as good as any going in 
these parts — but, half the time, money paid for doctor’s 
stuff is thrown away.” 

“ Still, I think it our duty to try to serve a fellow-creat- 
ure that is in distress ; and Daggett, I fear, will not go 
through the week, if indeed he go through the night.” 

“ I should be sorry to have him die ! ” exclaimed the 
deacon, looking really distressed at this intelligence. 
“ Right sorry should I be, to have him die — just yet.” 

The last two words were uttered unconsciously, and in 
a way to cause the niece to regret that they had been ut- 
tered at all. But they had come, notwithstanding, and the 
deacon saw that he had been too frank. The fault could 
not now be remedied, and he was fain to allow his words 
to produce their own effect. 

“ Die he will, I fear, uncle,” returned Mary, after a short 
pause ; ‘ c and sorry should I be to have it so without our 
feeling the consolation of knowing we had done all in our 
power to save him, or to serve him.” 

“ It is so far to the Harbor, that no good might come 
of a messenger ; and the money paid him would be thrown 
away, too.” 


26 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“I dare say Roswell Gar’ner would be glad to go to 
help a fellow-creature who is suffering. He would not 
think of demanding any pay.” 

“ Yes, that is true. I will say this for Gar’ner, that he 
is as reasonable a young man, when he does an odd job, as 
any one I know. I like to employ him.” 

Mary understood this very well. It amounted to neither 
more nor less than the deacon’s perfect consciousness that 
the youth had, again and again, given him his time and 
his services gratuitously ; and that, too, more than once, 
under circumstances when it would have been quite proper 
that he should look for a remuneration. A slight color 
stole over the face of the niece, as memory recalled to her 
mind these different occasions. Was that sensitive blush 
owing to her perceiving the besetting weakness of one who 
stood in the light -of a parent to her, and towards whom 
she endeavored to feel the affection of a child ? We shall 
not gainsay this, so far as a portion of the feeling which 
produced that blush was concerned ; but, certain it is, that 
the thought that Roswell had exerted himself to oblige her 
uncle, obtruded itself somewhat vividly among her other 
recollections. 

“ Well, sir,” the niece resumed, after another brief 
pause, “ we can send for Roswell, if you think it best, and 
ask him to do the poor man this act of kindness.” 

“ Your messengers after doctors are always in such a 
hurry ! I dare say, Gar’ner would think it necessary to 
hire a horse to cross Shelter Island, and then perhaps a 
boat to get across to the Harbor. If no boat was to be 
found, it might be another horse to gallop away round the 
head of the Bay. Why, five dollars would scarce meet the 
cost of such a race ! ” 

“ If five dollars were needed, Roswell would pay them 
out of his own pocket, rather than ask another to assist 
him in doing an act of charity. But no horse will be 
necessary ; the whale-boat is at the wharf, and is ready 
for use, at any moment.” 

“ True, I had forgotten the whale-boat. If that is home, 
the doctor might be brought across at a reasonable rate, 


THE SEA LIONS. 


27 


especially if Gar’ner will volunteer. I dare say Daggett’s 
effects will pay the bill for attendance, since they have an- 
swered, as yet, to meet the Widow White’s charges. As 
I live, here comes Gar’ner, at this moment, and just as we 
want him.” 

“ I knew of no other to ask to cross the bays, sir, and 
sent for Roswell before you returned. Had you not got 
back, as you did, I should have takeD on myself the duty 
of send ; ng for the doctor.” 

In which case, girl, you would have made yourself 
liable. I have too many demands on my means, to be 
scattering dollars broadcast. But here is Gar’ner, and I 
dare say all will be made right.” 

Gardiner now joined the uncle and niece, who had held 
this conversation in the porch, having hastened up from 
the schooner the instant he received Mary’s summons. He 
was rewarded by a kind look and a friendly shake of the 
hand, each of which was slightly more cordial than those 
that prudent and thoughtful young woman was accustomed 
to bestow on him. He saw that Mary was a little earnest 
in her manner, and looked curious, as well as interested, 
to learn why he had been summoned at all. Sunday was 
kept so rigidly at the deacon’s, that the young man did ndfc 
dare visit the house until after the sun had set; the New 
England practice of commencing the Sabbath of a Satur- 
day evening, and bringing it to a close at the succeeding 
sunset, prevailing among most of the people of Suffolk, the 
Episcopalians forming nearly all the exceptions to the 
usage. Sunday evening, consequently, was in great request 
for visits, it being the favorite time for the young people 
to meet, as they were not only certain to be unemployed, 
but to be in their best. Roswell Gardiner was in the prac- 
tice of visiting Mary Pratt on Sunday evenings ; but he 
would almost as soon think of desecrating a church, as 
think of entering the deacon’s abode, on the Sabbath, until 
after sunset, or “ sun down” to use the familiar American- 
ism that is commonly applied to this hour of the day. 
Here he was, now, however, wondering, and anxious to 
learn why he had been sent for. 


28 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Roswell,” said Mary, earnestly, slightly coloring again 
as she spoke, “ we have a great favor to ask. You know 
the poor old sailor who has been staying at the Widow 
White’s, this month or more — he is now very low ; so 
low, we think he ought to have better advice than can be 
found on Oyster Pond, and we wish to get Dr. Sage over 
from the Harbor. How to do it has been the question, 
when I thought of you. If you could take the whale-boat 
and go across, the poor man might have the benefit of the 
doctor’s advice in the course of a few hours.” 

“ Yes,” put in the uncle, “and I shall charge nothing 
for the use of the boat ; so that, if you volunteer, Gar’ner, 
it will leave so much towards settling up the man’s ac- 
counts, when settling day comes.” 

Roswell Gardiner understood both uncle and niece per- 
fectly. The intense selfishness of the first was no more a 
secret to him than was the entire disinterestedness of the 
last. He gazed a moment, in fervent admiration, at Mary ; 
then he turned to the deacon, and professed his readiness 
to “ volunteer.” Knowing the man so well, he took care 
distinctly to express the word, so as to put the mind of 
this votary of Mammon at ease. 

• “ Gar’ner will volunteer , then,” rejoined the uncle, “ and 
I shall charge nothing for the use of the boat. This is 
‘ doing as we would be done by,’ and is all right, consider- 
ing that Daggett is sick and among strangers. The wind 
is fair, or nearly fair, to go and to come back, and you ’ll 
make a short trip of it. Yes, it will cost nothing, and may 
do the poor man good.” 

“ Now go at once, Roswell,” said Mary, in an entreat- 
ing manner ; “ and show the same skill in managing the 
boat that you did the day you won the race against the 
Harbor oarsmen.” 

“ I will do all a man can, to oblige you, Mary, as well 
as to serve the sick. If Dr. Sage should not be at home, 
am I to look for another physician, Mr. Pratt ? ” 

“ Sage must be at home — we can employ no other. 
Tour old, long-established physicians understand how to 
consider practice, and don’t make mistakes — by the way 


THE SEA LIONS. 


29 


Gar’ner, you needn’t mention my name in tLe business, at 
all. Just say that a sick man, at the Widow White’s, 
needs his services, and that you had volunteered to take 
him across. That will bring him — I know the man.” 

Again Gardiner understood what the deacon meant. 
He was just as desirous of not paying the physician as of 
not paying the messenger. Mary understood him, too, 
and, with a face still more sad than anxiety had previously 
made it, she walked into the house, leaving her uncle and 
lover in the porch. After a few more injunctions from the 
former, in the way of prudent precaution, the latter de- 
parted, hurrying down to the water-side, in order to take 
to the boat. 


30 


THE SEA LIONS 


CHAPTER III. 

All that glisters is not gold, 

Often have you heard that told ; 

Many a man his life hath sold, 

But my outside to behold. 

Merchant of Venice. 

No sooner was Deacon Pratt left alone, than he has- 
tened to the humble dwelling of the Widow White. The 
disease of Daggett was a general decay that was not at- 
tended with much suffering. He was now seated in a 
homely arm-chair, and was able to converse. He was not 
aware, indeed, of the real danger of his case, and still had 
hopes of surviving many years. The deacon came in at the 
door, just as the widow had passed through it, on her way 
to visit another crone, who lived hard by, and with whom 
she was in the constant habit of consulting. She had 
seen the deacon in the distance, and took that occasion to 
run across the road, having a sort of instinctive notion that 
her presence was not required when the two men con- 
ferred together. What was the subject of their frequent 
private communications, the Widow White did not exactly 
know ; but what she imagined, will in part appear in her 
discourse with her neighbor, the Widow Stone. 

“Here’s the deacon, ag’in ! ” cried the Widow White, 
as she bolted hurriedly into her friend’s presence. “ This 
makes the third time he has been at my house since yester- 
day morning. What can he mean ? ” 

“ Oh ! I dare say, Betsy, he means no more than to 
visit the sick, as he pretends is the reason of his many 
visits.” 

“ You forget it is Sabba’ day ! ” added the Widow 
White, with emphasis. 

“ The better day, the better deed, Betsy ” 


THE SEA LIONS. 31 

“I know that; but it’s dreadful often for a man to 
visit the sicl» — three times in twenty-four hours ! ” 

“ Yes; ’t would have been more nat’ral for a woman, a 
body must own,” returned the Widow Stone, a little dryly. 
“ Had the deacon been a woman, I dare say, Betsy, you 
would not have thought so much of his visits.” 

“ I should think nothing of them at all,” rejoined the 
sister widow, innocently enough. “ But it is dreadful odd 
in a man to be visiting about among the sick so much — 
and he a deacon of the meeting ! ” 

u Yes, it is not as common as it might be, particularly 
among deacons. But, come in, Betsy, and I will show 
you the text from which minister preached this morning. 
It ’s well worth attending to, for it touches on our forlorn 
state.” Hereupon, the two relicts entered an inner room, 
where we shall leave them to discuss the merits of the ser- 
mon, interrupted by many protestations on the part of the 
Widow White, concerning the “ dreadful ” character of 
Deacon Pratt’s many visits to her cottage, “ Sabba’ days ” 
as well as week days. 

In the mean while, the interview between the deacon, 
himself, and the sick mariner, had its course. After the 
first salutations, and the usual inquiries, the visitor, with 
some parade of manner, alluded to the fact that he had 
sent for a physician for the other’s benefit. 

“ I did it of my own head,” added the deacon ; “ or, I 
might better say, of my own heart. It was unpleasant to 
me to witness your sufferings, without doing something to 
alleviate them. To alleviate sorrow, and pain, and the 
throes of conscience, is one of the most pleasant of all the 
Christian offices. Yes, I have sent young Gar’ner across 
»he bays to the harbor ; and three or four hours hence we 
may look for him back, with Dr. Sage in his boat.” 

“ I only hope I shall have the means to pay for all this 
expense and trouble, deacon,” returned Daggett, in a sort 
of doubting way, that, for a moment, rendered his friend 
exceedingly uncomfortable. “ Go, I know I must, sooner 
or later ; but could I only live to get to the Vineyard, 
*t would be found that my share of the old homestead 


32 


THE SEA LIONS. 


would make up for all my wants. I may live to see the 
end of the other business.” 

Among the other tales of Daggett, was one which said 
that he had never yet received his share of his father's 
property ; an account that was true enough, though the 
truth might have shown that the old man had left nothing 
worth dividing. He had been a common mariner, like the 
son, and had left behind him a common mariner’s estate. 
The deacon mused a moment, and then he took an occasion 
to advert to the subject that had now been uppermost in 
his thoughts ever since he had been in the habit of holding 
secret conferences with the sick man. What that subject 
was, will appear in the course of the conversation that 
ensued. 

“ Have you thought of the chart, Daggett,” asked the 
deacon, “ and given an eye to that journal ? ” 

“ Both, sir. Your kindness to me has been so great, 
that I am not a man apt to forget it.” 

“ I wish you would show me, yourself, the precise places 
on the chart, where them islands are to be found. There 
is nothing like seeing a thing with one’s own eyes.” 

“ You forget my oath, Deacon Pratt. Every man on us 
took his bible oath not to point out the position of the 
islands, until a’ ter the year 1820. Then, each and all on 
us is at liberty to do as he pleases. But the chart is 
in my chest, and not only the islands, but the key, is so 
plainly laid down, that any mariner could find ’em. With 
that chest, however, I cannot part so long as I live. Get 
me well, and I will sail in the Sea Lion, and tell your 
Captain Gar’ner all he will have occasion to know. The 
man’s fortune will be made who first gets to either of them 
places.” 

“ Yes, I can imagine that, easy enough, from your ac- 
counts, Daggett — but how am I to be certain that some 
other vessel will not get the start of me ? ” 

“ Because the secret is now my own. There was but 
seven on us, in that brig, all told. Of them seven, four 
died at the islands of the fever, homeward bound ; and of 
the other three, the captain was drowned in the squall I 


THE SEA LIONS. 


33 


told you of, when he was washed overboard. That left 
only Jack Thompson and me ; and Jack, I think, must be 
th$ very man whose death I see’d, six months since, as 
being killed by a whale on the False Banks.” 

“ Jack Thompson is so common a name, a body never 
knows. Besides, if he was killed by that whale, he may 
have told the secret to a dozen before the accident.” 

“ There ’s his oath ag’in it. Jack was sworn, as well as 
all on us, and he was a man likely to starid by what he 
swore to. This was none of your custom-house oaths, of 
which a chap might take a dozen of a morning, and all 
should be false ; but it was an oath that put a seaman 
on his honor, since it was a good-fellowship affair, all 
round.” 

Deacon Pratt did not tell Daggett that Thompson might 
have as good reasons for disregarding the oath as he 
had himself ; but he thought it. These are things that 
no wise man utters on such occasions ; and this opinion 
touching the equality of the obligation of that oath was one 
of them. 

“ There is another hold upon Jack,” continued Daggett, 
after reflecting a moment. “ He never could make any 
fist of latitude and longitude at all, and he kept no journal. 
Now, should he get it wrong, he and his friends might hunt 
a year without finding either of the places.” 

“You think there was no mistake in the pirate’s account 
of that key, and of the buried treasure ? ” asked the bea- 
con, anxiously. 

“ I would swear to the truth of what he said, as freely 
as if I had seen the box myself. They was necessitated, 
as you may suppose, or they never would have left so much 
gold, in sich an uninhabited place ; but leave it they did, 
on the word of a dying man.” 

“ Dying ? You mean the pirate, I suppose ? ” 

“ To be sure I do. We was shut up in the same prison, 
and we talked the matter over at least twenty times, before 
he was swung off. When they was satisfied I had nothing 
to do with the pirates, I was cleared ; and I was on my 
way to the Vineyard, to get some craft or other, to go a’ter 


31 


THE SEA LIONS. 


these two treasures (for one is just as much a treasure as 
t’other) when I was put ashore here. It ’s much the same 
to me, whether the craft sails from Oyster Pond or from 
the Vineyard.” 

“ Of course. Well, as much to oblige you, and to put 
your mind at rest, as anything else, I’ve bought this Sea 
Lion, and engaged young Roswell Gar’ner to go out in her, 
as her master. She ’ll be ready to sail in a fortnight, and, 
if things turn put as you say, a good voyage will she make. 
All interested in her will have reason to rejoice. I see 
but one thing needful just now, and that is that you should 
give me the chart at once, in order that I may study it well, 
before the schooner sails.” 

“ Do you mean to make the v’y’ge yourself, deacon ? ” 
asked Daggett, in some surprise. 

“ Not in person, certainly,” was the answer. l< I ’m get- 
ting somewhat too old to leave home for so long a time ; 
and, though born and brought up in sight of salt-water, 
I ’ve never tried it beyond a trip to York, or one to Boston 
Still, I shall have my property in the adventure, and it ’s 
nat’ral to keep an eye on that. Now the chart well stud- 
ied beforehand would be much more useful, it seems to 
me, than it can possibly be, if taken up at a late hour.” 

“ There will be time enough for Captain Gar’ner to over- 
haul his chart well, afore he reaches either of his ports,” 
returned the mariner, evasively. “ If I sail with him, as 
I suppose I must, nothing will be easier than for me to 
give all the courses and distances.” 

This reply produced a long and brooding silence. By 
this time the reader will have got a clew to the nature of 
the secret that was discussed so much, and so often, be- 
tween these two men. Daggett, finding himself sick, poor, 
and friendless, among strangers, had early cast about him 
for the means of obtaining an interest with those who 
might serve him. He had soon got an insight into the 
character of Deacon Pratt, from the passing remarks of the 
Widow White, who was induced to allude to the uncle, in 
consequence of the charitable visits of the niece. One day, 
when matters appeared to be at a very low ebb with him, 


THE SEA LIONS. 


35 


and shortly after he had been put ashore, the sick mariner 
requested an interview with the deacon himself. The re- 
quest had been reluctantly granted ; but, during the visit, 
Daggett had managed so well to whet his visitor’s appetite 
for gain, that henceforth there was no trouble in procuring 
the deacon’s company. Little by little had Daggett let out 
his facts, always keeping enough in reserve to render him- 
self necessary, until he had got his new acquaintance in 
the highest state of feverish excitement. The schooner 
was purchased, and all the arrangements necessary to her 
outfit were pressed forward as fast as prudence would at 
all allow. The chart, and the latitude and longitude, were 
the circumstances over which Daggett retained the control. 
These he kept to himself, though he averred that he had 
laid down on the charts that were in his chest the two im- 
portant points which had been the subjects of his commu- 
nications. 

Although this man had been wily in making his revela- 
tions, and had chosen his confidant with caution and saga- 
city, most of that which he related was true. He had 
belonged to a sealer that had been in a very high southern 
latitude, where it had made some very important discov- 
eries, touching the animals that formed the objects of its 
search. It was possible to fill a vessel in those islands in 
a few weeks ; and the mastef of the sealer, Daggett having 
been his mate, had made all his people swear on their 
“ bible oaths ” not to reveal the facts, except under pre- 
scribed circumstances. His own vessel was full when he 
made the discoveries, but misfortune befell her on her home 
ward-bound passage, until she was herself totally lost in 
the West Indies, and that in a part of the ocean where she 
had no business to. be. 

In consequence of these several calamities, Daggett and 
one more man were the sole living depositaries of the im- 
portant information. These men separated, and, as stated, 
Daggett had reason to think that his former shipmate had 
been recently killed by a whale. The life and movements 
of a sailor are usually as eccentric as the career of a comet. 
After the loss of the sealing-vessel, Daggett remained in 


36 


THE SEA LIONS. 


the West Indies and on the Spanish Main for some time, 
until falling into evil company he was imprisoned on a 
charge of piracy, in company with one who better deserved 
the imputation. While in the same cell, the pirate had 
made a relation to Daggett of all the incidents of a very 
eventful life. Among other things revealed was the fact 
that, on a certain occasion, he and two others had deposited 
a very considerable amount of treasure on a key that he 
described very minutely, and which he now bestowed on 
Daggett as some compensation for his present unmerited 
sufferings, his companions having both been drowned by the 
upsetting of their boat on the return from the key in ques- 
tion. Subsequently, this pirate had been executed, and 
Daggett liberated. He was not able to get to the key 
without making friends and confidants on whom he could 
rely, and he was actually making the best of his way to 
Martha’s Vineyard with that intent, when put ashore on 
Oyster Pond. In most of that which this man had related 
to the deacon, therefore, he had told the truth, though it 
was the truth embellished, as is so apt to be the case with 
men of vulgar minds. He might have been misled by the 
narrative of the pirate, but it was his own opinion that he 
had not been. The man was a Scot, prudent, wary, and 
sagacious ; and in the revelations he made he appeared to 
be governed by a conviction that his own course was run, 
and that it was best that his secret should not die with him. 
Daggett had rendered him certain services, too, and grat- 
itude might have had some influence. 

“My mind has been much exercised with this matter of 
the hidden gold,” resumed the deacon, after the long pause 
already mentioned. “ You will remember that there may 
be lawful owners of that money, should Gar’ner even sue* 
ceed in finding it” 

“ ’T would be hard for ’em to prove their claims, sir, if 
what McGosh told me was true. Accordin’ to his account, 
the gold came from all sides — starboard and larboard, as a 
body might say — and it was jumbled together, and so 
mixed, that a young girl could not pick out her lover’s 
keepsake from among the othei pieces. ’T was the ’arnin’s 


THE SEA LIONS. 


37 


of three years .cruisin’, as I understood him to say ; and 
much of the stuff had been exchanged in port, especially to 
get the custom-house officers and king’s office® out of its 
wake. There ’s king’s officers among them bloody Span- 
iards, Deacon Pratt, all the same as among the English.” 

“ Be temperate in your language, friend ; a rough speech 
is unseemly, particularly of the Lord’s day.” 

Daggett rolled the tobacco over his tongue, and his eyes 
twinkled with a sort of leer, which indicated that the fellow 
was not without some humor. He submitted patiently to 
the rebuke, however, making no remonstrance against its 
reception. 

“ No, no,” he added presently, “ a starn chase, they say, 
is a long chase ; and the owners of them doubloons, if 
owners they can now be called, must be out of sight, long 
before this. Accordin’ to McGosh, some of the gold ra’ally 
captured had passed back, through the hands of them 
that sent it to sea, and they did not know their own 
children ! ” 

“ It is certainly hard to identify coin, and it would be a 
bold man who should stand up, in open court, and make 
oath to its being the same he had once held. I have heard 
of the same gold’s having answered the purpose of twenty 
banks, one piece being so like another.” 

“ Ay, ay, sir, gold is gold ; and any of it is good enough 
for me, though doubloons is my favorites. When a fellow 
has got half-a-dozen doubloons alongside of his ribs, he 
can look the landlord full in the eye ; and no one thinks 
of saying to sich as he, 1 it ’s time to think of shipping 
ag’in.’ ” 

From the nature of this discourse, it will not be easy for 
the reader to imagine the real condition of Daggett. At 
the very moment he was thus conversing of money, and 
incidentally manifesting his expectations of accompanying 
Roswell Gardiner in the expedition that was about to sail, 
the man had not actually four-and-twenty hours of life in 
him. Mary Pratt had foreseen his true state, accustomed 
as sh€ was to administer to the wants of the dying ; but 
no one else appeared to be aware of it, not even the deacon. 


38 


THE SEA LIONS. 


It was true tliat the fellow spoke, as it might be, from hia 
throat only, and that his voice was hollow, and sometimes 
’•educed to ^whisper ; but he ascribed this, himself, to the 
circumstance that he had taken a cold. Whether the dea- 
con believed this account or not, it might be difficult to 
say; but he appeared to give it full credit. Perhaps his 
mind was so much occupied with the subject of his discus- 
sions with Daggett, that it did not sufficiently advert to the 
real condition of the man. 

Twice, that afternoon, did Deacon Pratt go between the 
cottage of the Widow White and his own dwelling. As 
often did the relict fly across the way to express her won- 
der to the Widow Stone, at the frequency of the rich man’s 
visits. The second time that he came was when he saw 
the whale-boat rounding the end of Shelter Island, and he 
perceived by means of his glass, that Dr. Sage was in it. 
At this sight the deacon hurried off to the cottage again, 
having something to say to Daggett that could no longer 
be delayed. 

“ The whale-boat will soon be in,” he observed, as soon 
as he had taken his seat, “ and we shall shortly have the 
doctor here. That young Gar’ner does what he has to do, 
always, with a jerk ! There was no such haste, but he 
seems to be ever in a hurry ! ” 

“ Do what is to be done at once, and then lie by, is the 
sailor’s rule, deacon,” rejoined the mariner. “ Squalls, and 
gusts, and reefin’, and brailin’ up, and haulin’ down, won’t 
wait for the seaman’s leisure. His work must be done at 
once, or it will not be done at all. I’m not afeard of the 
doctor ; so let him come as soon as he pleases. Medicine 
can’t hurt a body, if he don’t take it.” 

“ There ’s one thing I wish to say to you, Daggett, be- 
fore Dr. Sage comes in. Talking too much may excite 
you, especially talking of matters that are of interest ; and 
you may give him a false impression of your state, should 
you get the pulse up, and the cheek flushed, by over-talk- 
ing.” 

“ I understand you, deacon. My secret is my secret, 
and no doctor shall get it out of me as long as I know 


THE SEA LIONS. 


39 


what I say. I’m not so friendly with them, as to seek 
counsel among doctors.” 

“ Then it ’s the Lord’s day,” added the Pharisee, “ and it 
is not seemly to dwell too much on worldly interests, on 
the Sabbath.” 

A novice might have been surprised, after what had 
passed, at the exceeding coolness with which the deacon ut- 
tered this sentiment. Daggett was not so in the least, how- 
ever ; for he had taken the measure of his new confidant’s 
conscience, and had lived long enough to know how marked 
was the difference between professions and practice. Noth- 
ing, indeed, is more common than to meet with those who 
denounce that in others, which is of constant occurrence 
with themselves ; and who rail at vices that are so inter- 
woven with their own moral being, as to compose integral 
portions of their existence. As for the deacon, he really 
thought it would be unseemly, and of evil example, for 
Daggett to converse with Dr. Sage, touching these doub- 
loons, of the Lord’s day ; while he had felt no scruples 
himself, a short hour before, to make them the theme of 
a long and interesting discussion, in his own person. It 
might not repay us for the trouble, to look for the salve 
that the worthy man applied to his own conscience, by way 
of reconciling the apparent contradiction ; though it prob- 
ably was connected with some fancied and especial duty 
on his part, of taking care of the sick man’s secrets. Sick- 
ness, it is well known, forms the apology for many an error, 
both of omission and commission. 

Dr. Sage now arrived ; a shrewd,' observant, intelligent 
man, who had formerly represented the district in which 
he lived, in Congress. He was skillful in his profession, 
and soon made up his mind concerning the state of his 
patient. As the deacon never left him for a moment, to 
him he first communicated his opinion, after the visit, as 
the two walked back towards the well-known dwelling of 
the Pratts. 

“ This poor man is in the last stages of a decline,” said 
the physician, coolly, “ and medicine can do him no good. 
He may live a month ; though it would not surprise me to 
hear of his death iu an hour.” 


40 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Do you think his time so short ! ” exclaimed the dea- 
con. “ I was in hopes he might last until the Sea Lion 
goes out, and that a voyage might help to set him up.” 

“ Nothing will ever set him up again, deacon, you may 
depend on that. No sea-voyage will do him any good; 
and it is better that he should remain on shore, on account 
of the greater comforts he will get. Does he belong on 
Oyster Pond ? ” 

“ He comes from somewhere east,” answered the deaccn, 
careful not to let the doctor know the place whence the 
stranger had come, though to little purpose, as will pres- 
ently be seen. “ He has neither friend nor acquaintance, 
here ; though I should think his effects sufficient to meet 
all charges.” 

“ Should they not be, he is welcome to my visit,” an- 
swered the doctor, promptly ; for he well understood the 
deacon’s motive in making the remark. “ I have enjoyed 
a pleasant sail across the bays with young Gar’ner, who 
has promised to take me back again. I like boating, and 
am always better for one of these sailing excursions. 
Could I carry my patients along, half of them would be 
benefited by the pure air and the exercise.” 

“ It’s a grateful thing to meet with one of your temper- 
ament, doctor — but Daggett ” — 

“ Is this man named Daggett ? ” interrupted the phy- 
sician. 

“ I believe that is what he calls himself, though a body 
never is certain of what such people say.” 

“ That ’s true, deacon ; your rambling, houseless sailor 
is commonly a great liar — at least so have I always found 
him. Most of their log-books will not do to read ; or, for 
that matter, to be written out, in full. But if this man’s 
name is really Daggett, he must come from the Vineyard. 
There are Daggetts there in scores : yes, he must be a 
Vineyard man.” 

“There are Daggetts in Connecticut, as I know of a 
certainty ” — 

“We all know that, for it is a name of weight there ; 
but the Vineyard is the cradle of the breed. The man has 


THE SEA LIONS. 


41 


a Vineyard look about him, too. I dare say, now, he has 
not been home for many a day.” 

The deacon was in an agony. He was menaced with 
the very thing he was in the hope of staving off, or a dis- 
cussion on the subject of the sick man’s previous life. 
The doctor was so mercurial and quick of apprehension, 
that, once fairly on the scent, he was nearly certain he 
would extract everything from the patient. This was the 
principal reason why the deacon did not wish to send for 
him ; the expense, though a serious objection to one so 
niggardly, being of secondary consideration when so many 
doubloons were at stake. It was necessary, however, to 
talk on boldly, as any appearance of hesitation might ex- 
cite the doctor’s distrust. The answers, therefore, came in- 
stantaneously. 

“ It may be as you say, doctor,” returned the deacon ; 
“ for them Vineyard folks ( Anglic6 folk) are great wan- 
derers.” 

“ That are they. I had occasion to pass a day there, a 
few years since, on my way to Boston, and I found five 
women on the island to one man. It must be a particu- 
larly conscientious person who could pass a week there, 
and escape committing the crime of bigamy. As for your 
bachelors, I have heard that a poor wretch of that descrip- 
tion, who unluckily found himself cast ashore there, was 
married three times the same morning.” 

As the doctor was a little of a wag, Deacon Pratt did not 
deem it necessary religiously to believe all that now escaped 
him ; but he was glad to keep him in this vein, in order to 
prevent his getting again on the track of Daggett’s early 
life. The device succeeded, Martha’s Vineyard beffg a 
standing joke for all in that quarter of the world, on the 
subject of the ladies. 

Mary was in the porch to receive her uncle and the phy- 
sician. It was unnecessary for her to ask any questions, for 
her speaking countenance said all that was required, in or- 
der to obtain an answer. 

“ He ’s in a bad way, certainly, young lady,” observed 
the doctor, talking a seat on one of the. benches, u and T 


42 


THE SEA LIONS. 


can give no hope. How long he may live, is another mat- 
ter. If he has friends whom he wishes to see, or if he has 
any affairs to settle, the truth should be told him at once, 
and no time lost.” 

“He knows nothing of his friends,” interrupted the dea- 
con, quite thrown off his guard by his own eagerness, and 
unconscious, at the moment, of the manner in which he 
was committing himself on the subject of a knowledge of 
the sick man’s birth-place, “ not having been on the Vine- 
yard, or heard from there, since he first left home, quite 
fifty years since.” 

The doctor saw the contradiction, and it set him thinking, 
and conjecturing, but he was too discreet to betray himself. 
An explanation there probably was, and he trusted to time 
to ascertain it. 

“ What has become of Captain Gar’ner?” he asked, look- 
ing curiously around, as if he expected to find him tied to 
the niece’s apron-string. 

Mary blushed, but she was too innocent to betray any 
real confusion. 

“ He has gone back to the schooner, in order to have the 
boat ready for your return.” 

“ And that return must take place, young lady, as soon 
as I have drunk two cups of your tea. I have patients at 
the Harbor who must yet be visited this evening, and the 
wind goes down with the sun. Let the poor man take the 
draughts 1 have left for him — they will soothe him, and 
help his breathing — more than this my skill can do nothing 
for him. Deacon, you need sa}' nothing of this visit — I 
am sufficiently repaid by the air, the sail, and Miss Mary’s 
welcome. I perceive that she is glad to see me, and that 
is something, between so young a woman and so old a man. 
And now for the two* cups of tea.” 

The tea was drunk, and the doctor took his leave, shak- 
ing his head as he repeated to the niece, that the medical 
science could do nothing for the sick man. 

“ Let his friends know his situation at once, deacon,” he 
said, as they walked towards the wharf, where the whale- 
boat was all ready for a start. “ There is not an hour to 


THE SEA LIONS. 


48 


lose. Now I think of it, the Flash, Captain Smith, is to 
take a cargo of oil to Boston, and sails to-morrow. I can 
write a line by her, as it is ten to one she will go into the 
Hole. All our craft get into that Hole, or into Tarpaulin 
Cove, before they venture across the shoals ; and a letter 
addressed to any person of the name of Daggett might find 
the right man. I ’ll write it this very evening.” 

The announcement of this intention threw the deacon 
into a cold sweat, but he did not think it prudent to say 
aught against it. He had bought the Sea Lion, engaged 
Roswell Gardiner, and otherwise expended a large sum of 
money, in the expectation of handling those doubloons, to 
say nothing of the furs ; and here was a chance of all his 
calculations being defeated by the interference of imperti- 
nent and greedy relatives ! There was no remedy but 
patience, and this the deacon endeavored to exercise. 

Deacon Pratt did not accompany the doctor beyond the 
limits of his own orchard. It was not deemed seemly for 
a member of the meeting to be seen walking, out on the 
Sabbath, and this was remembered in season to prevent 
neighborly comments. It is true, the doctor might furnish 
an apology ; but your strictly religious people, when they 
undertake the care of other people’s consciences, do not 
often descend to these particulars. 

No sooner had Gardiner and the physician reembarked 
than the deacon returned to the cottage of the Widow 
White. Here he had another long and searching discourse 
with the sick mariner. Poor Daggett was wearied with 
the subject ; but Dr. Sage’s predictions of an early termi- 
nation of the case, and the possibility that kinsmen might 
cross over from the “ Vineyard,” in order to learn what the 
long absent man had in his possession, acted on him as 
keen incentives. By learning the most material facts now, 
the Sea Lion might get so far ahead of all competitors as 
to secure the prizes, even should Daggett let others into 
the secret, and start another vessel on the same expedition. 
His own schooner was nearly ready for sea, whereas time 
would be needed in order to make an entire outfit. 

But Daggett did not appeal- to be disposed to be more 


44 


THE SEA LIONS. 


communicative than heretofore. He went over the nar- 
rative of the discovery of the sealing-island, and gave a 
graphic account of the number and tame condition of the 
animals who frequented it. A man might walk in their 
midst without giving the smallest alarm. In a word, all 
that a gang of good hands would have to do, would be to 
kill, and skin, and secure the oil. It would be like pick- 
ing^up dollars on a sea-beach. Sadly ! sadly ! indeed, was 
the deacon’s cupidity excited by this account ; a vivid pict- 
ure of whales, or seals, having some such effect on the 
imagination of a true Suffolk County man, or more properly 
on thp,t of an East-ender, as those who live beyond River- 
head are termed, as a glowing account of a prairie covered 
with wheat has on that of a Wolverine or a Buckeye ; or 
an enumeration of cent per cent, has on the feelings of a 
Wall Street broker. Never before had Deacon Pratt been 
so much “exercised” with a love of Mammon. The 
pirate’s tale, which was also recapitulated with much gusto, 
scarce excited him as much as Daggett’s glowing account 
of the number, condition, and size of the seals. 

Nothing was withheld but the latitudes and longitudes. 
No art of the deacon’s, and he practiced many, could extort 
from the mariner these most material facts, without which 
all the rest were useless ; and the old man worked himself 
into a fever almost as high as that which soon came over 
Daggett, in the effort to come at these facts — but all in 
vain. 

At that hour the pulse of the sick man usually quick- 
ened ; but on this occasion it fairly thumped. He had 
excited himself, as well as his listener ; and the inconsid- 
erate manner in whieh both had yielded up their energies 
to these enticing images of wealth, contributed largely to 
increase the evil. At length, exhaustion came to put an 
end to the scene, which was getting to be dramatic as well 
as revolting. 

So conscious was the deacon, on returning home that 
evening, that his mind was not in such a condition as it 
behooved him to keep it in on the Lord’s Day, that he was 
afraid to encounter the placid eye of his devout and single* 


THE SEA LIONS. 


45 


minded niece. Instead of joining her, and uniting in the 
services that were customary at that hour, he walked in 
the adjoining orchard until near nine o’clock. Mammon 
was uppermost in the place of the Deity, and habit offered 
too strong a barrier to permit him to bring, as it were, the 
false god openly into the presence of the true. 


46 


THE SEA LIONS. 


CHAPTER IV. 

Oh! mourn not for them, their grief is o’er, 

Oh! weep not for them, they weep no more; 

For deep is their sleep, though cold and hard 
Their pillow may be in the old kirk-yard. 

Bayly. 

Early on the succeeding morning, the whole household 
of Deacon Pratt, himself included, were up and doing. It 
was as the sun came up out of the waters that Mary and 
her uncle met in the porch, as if to greet each other. 

“Yonder comes the Widow White, and seemingly in a 
great hurry,” said the niece, anxiously ; “ I am afraid her 
patient is worse !” 

“ He seemed better when I left him last evening, though 
a little tired with talking,” returned the uncle. “ The man 
would talk, do all I could to stop him. I wanted to get 
but two or three words from him, and he used a thousand, 
without once using the few I wished most to hear. A talk- 
ing man is that Daggett, I can tell you, Mary ! ” 

“ He ’ll never talk ag’in, deacon ! ” exclaimed the Widow 
White, who had got so near as to hear the concluding 
words of the last speaker — “ He ’ll never say good or evil 
more ! ” 

The deacon was so confounded as to be speechless. As 
for Mary, she expressed her deep regrets that the summons 
should have been so sudden, and that the previous prepara' 
tion was so small ; matters that gave her far more concern 
than any other consideration. They were not long left to 
conjectures, the voluble widow soon supplying all the facts 
that had occurred. It appeared that Daggett died in the 
night, the widow having found him stiff and cold on visit- 
ing his bed-side a few minutes before. That this somewhat 
unexpected event, as to the time at least, was hastened by 


THE SEA LIONS. 


47 


the excitement of the conversation mentioned, there can 
be little doubt, though no comment was made on the cir- 
cumstance. The immediate cause of death was suffocation 
from the effects of suppuration, as so often occurs in rapid 
consumption. 

It would be representing Deacon Pratt as a worse man 
than he actually was, to say that this sudden death had no 
effect on his feelings. For a short time it brought him 
back to a sense of his own age, and condition, and pros- 
pects. For half an hour these considerations troubled him, 
but the power of Mammon gradually resumed its sway, and 
the unpleasant images slowly disappeared in others that ha 
found more agreeable. Then he began seriously to bethink 
him of what the circumstances required to be done. 

As there was nothing unusual in the death of Daggett, 
the investigations of the coroner were not required. It 
was clearly a natural, though a sudden death. It remained, 
therefore, only to give directions about the funeral, and to 
have an eye to the safe-keeping of the effects of the de- 
ceased. The deacon assumed the duty of taking charge 
of everything. The chest of Daggett was removed to his 
house for safe-keeping, the key having been taken from the 
pocket of his vest, and the necessary orders were given for 
the final disposition of the body. 

The deacon had another serious, and even painful half 
hour, when he first looked on the corpse. There it lay, 
a senseless shell, deserted by its immortal tenant, and to- 
tally unconscious of that subject which had so lately and 
so intensely interested them both. It appeared as if the 
ghastly countenance expressed its sense of the utter worth- 
lessness of all earthly schemes of wealth and happiness. 
Eternity seemed stamped upon the pinched and sunken 
features ; not eternity in the sense of imperishable matter, 
but in the sense of the fate of man. Had all the gold of 
the Indies laid within his reach, the arm of Daggett was 
now powerless to touch it. His eye could no longer gloat 
upon treasure, nor any part of his corporeal system profit 
by its possession. A more striking commentary on the 
vanity of human wishes could not, just then, have been 


48 


THE SEA LIONS. 


offered to the consideration of the deacon. His moral 
being was very strangely constituted. From early child- 
hood he had been accustomed to the cant of religion ; and, 
in many instances, impressions had been made on him that 
produced effects that it was easy to confound with the 
fruits that real piety brings forth. This is a result that we 
often find in a state of society in which appearances are 
made to take the place of reality. What is more, it is a 
result that we may look for equally among the formalists 
of established sects, and among the descendants of those 
who once deserted the homes of their fathers in order to 
escape from the impiety of so meretricious an abuse of the 
substance of godliness. In the case of the latter, appear- 
ances occupy the mind more than that love of God which is 
the one great test of human conversion from sin to an im- 
proving state of that holiness, without which we are told no 
man shall see his Creator ; without which, indeed, no man 
could endure to look upon that dread Being face to face. 

The deacon had all the forms of godliness in puritanical 
perfection. He had never taken the “ name of his God 
in vain,” throughout the course of a long life ; but he had 
abstained from this revolting and gratuitous sin, more be- 
cause it was a part of the teachings of his youth so to do, 
and because the neighbors would have been shocked at its 
commission, than because he felt the deep reverence for 
his Maker, which it became the insignificant being that was 
the work of his hand to entertain ; and which would, of 
itself, most effectually have prevented any wanton usg of 
his holy name, let the neighbors feel or think as they might 
on the subject. In this way Deacon Pratt might be said 
to have respected most of the commands of the Decalogue ; 
not, however, because the Spirit of God impelled him, 
through love, to reverence and obey, but because he had 
been brought up in a part of the country where it was 
considered seemly and right to be moral, to the senses, at 
least, if not to the All-seeing eye above. It was in this 
way that the deacon had arrived .at his preferment in the 
meeting. He had all the usual sectarian terms at the end 
of his tongue ; never uttered a careless expression ; was 


THE SEA LIONS. 


49 


regular at meeting ; apparently performed all the duties 
that his church required of , its professors, in the way of 
mere religious observances ; yet was he as far from being 
in that state which St. Paul has described succinctly as 
“for me to live is Christ, and to die is, gain,” as if he had 
been a pagan. It was not the love of God that was active 
in his soul, but the love of self ; and he happened to ex- 
hibit his passion under these restrained and deceptive forms, 
simply because he had been born and educated in a statf 
of society where they composed an integral part of exist- 
ence. Covetousness was the deacon’s besetting sin ; and, 
as it is a vice that may be pretty well concealed, with a 
little attention to appearances, it was the less likely to ex- 
pose him to comments than almost any other sin. It is 
true, that the neighborhood sometimes fancied him “ close, 
or, as they expressed it, “ cluss,” and men got to look 
sharply to their own interests in their dealings with him ; 
but, on the whole, there was perhaps more reason to ap- 
prehend, in such a community, that the example of so good 
a man should be accepted as authority, than that his acts 
should impeach his character, or endanger his standing. 

Very different were the situation, feelings, and motives 
of the niece. She devoutly loved God, and, as a conse- 
quence, all of those whom he had created, and placed 
around her. Her meek and gentle spirit led her to wor- 
ship in sincerity and truth ; and all that she thought, said, 
and did, was under the correction of the principles such 
motives could best produce. Her woman’s love for Ros- 
well Gardiner alone troubled her otherwise happy and 
peaceful existence. That, indeed, had caused her more than 
once to falter in her way ; but she struggled with the 
weakness, and had strong hopes of being able to over- 
come it. To accept of any other man as a husband, was, 
in her eyes, impossible; with the feelings she was fully 
conscious of entertaining towards him, it would have been 
both indelicate and unjust ; but, to accept him , while he 
regarded the Redeemer as only man, however pure and ex- 
alted, she felt would be putting herself willingly, or will- 
fully, into the hands of the great enemy of her salvation. 

4 


50 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Often and often had she prayed for her lover, even more 
devoutly, and with hotter tears, than she had ever prayed 
for herself; but, so far as she could discover, without any 
visible fruits. His opinions remained unchanged, and his 
frank nature forbade him from concealing their state from 
Mary. In this way, then, was unhappiness stealing on the 
early and innocent hours of one who might, otherwise, 
have been so contented and blessed. It formed a some- 
what peculiar feature in her case, that her uncle favored 
the views of her suitor. This rendered the trials of the 
niece so much the more severe, as she had no other judg- 
ment to sustain her than her own, fortified as that was, how- 
ever, by the consciousness of right, and the support of that 
great power which never deserts the faithful. 

Such was the state of feeling among some of the prin- 
cipal actors of our tale, when the sudden death of Daggett 
occurred. The body was not removed from the house of 
the Widow White, but the next morning it was conveyed 
to the “ grave-yard ” — “ church-yard ” would have sounded 
too episcopal — and interred in a corner that was bestowed 
on the unhonored and unknown. It was then, only, that 
the deacon believed he was the sole depositary of the im- 
portant secrets. He had the charts in his possession, and 
no more revelations could pass the lips of Daggett. Should 
the friends of the deceased sailor hear of his death, and 
come to look after his effects, there was very little proba- 
bility of their finding anything among them to furnish a 
clew to either the new sealing-ground, or to the buried 
treasure of the pirate. In order to be secured, he even 
went a little beyond his usual precautions, actually dis* 
charging all indebtedness of the deceased to the Widow- 
White out of his own pocket, by giving to her the sum of 
ten dollars. This was handsome compensation in her eyes 
as well as in his, and he quieted the suspicions so great 
and unusual an act of liberality would be apt to awaken, 
by saying, “he would look to the friends, or if they failed 
him, to the effects, for his returns ; for it was better he 
should lose by the stranger, than a lone widow. ’ ’ He also 
paid foi the coffin, the digging of the grave, and the other 


THE SEA LIONS. 


51 


light expenses of the interment. In a word, the deacon 
endeavored to hush all impertinent inquiries by applying 
the salve of silver, wherever it was needed. 

The chest had been removed to a large, light closet that 
communicated with the deacon’s own room. When all his, 
accounts were settled, thither he repaired, armed with the 
key that was to expose so much treasure to his longing eyes. 
Some slight, qualms arose, after he had locked himself in the 
room, touching the propriety of his opening the chest. It 
was not his, certainly ; but he put such a construction on 
the nature of the revelations of Daggett, as he thought 
would fully justify him in proceeding. He had purchased 
the schooner expressly to go in quest of the seals and the 
treasure. This he had done with Daggett’s knowledge and 
acquiescence ; nor did he conceive that his own rights were 
lessened by the mariner’s decease. As for himself, the 
deacon had never believed that the Martha’s Vineyard man 
could accompany the expedition, so that his presence or ab- 
sence could have no influence on his own rights. It is true, 
the deacon possessed no direct legal transfer of the charts ; 
but he inferred that all the previous circumstances gave 
him sufficient claims to justify him in, at least, looking into 
their contents. 

It was a solemn, as well as an anxious moment to the 
deacon, when he first raised the lid of the chest. Solemn, 
because it was not possible to forget the recent decease of 
its late owner ; and anxious, inasmuch as he had no cer- 
tainty that he should find, even on the charts, the places 
of which he sought the latitudes and longitudes. Cer- 
tainly, nothing like treasure presented itself to his eyes, 
when all that Daggett had left behind him lay exposed to 
view. The chest of a common sailor is usually but ill- 
furnished unless it may be just after his return from a long 
and well-paid voyage, and before he has had time to fall 
back on his purchases of clothes, as a fund to supply his 
cravings for personal gratification. This of Daggett’s 
formed no exception to the rule. The few clothes it con- 
tained were of the lightest sort, having been procured in 
warm climates, and were well worn, in addition. The 


52 


THE SEA LIONS. 


palms, needles, and shells, and carving in whale-bone, had 
all been sold, to meet their owner’s wants, and nothing of 
that sort remained. There were two old, dirty, and ragged 
charts, and on these the deacon laid his hands, much as the 
hawk, in its swoop, descends on its prey. As it did, how- 
ever, a tremor came over him, that actually compelled him 
to throw himself into a chair, and rest for a moment. 

The first of the charts opened, the deacon saw at a 
glance, was that of the antarctic circle. There, sure 
enough, was laid down in ink, three or four specks for 
islands, with lat. — °, — ", and long. — °> — ", written out, 
at its side. We are under obligations not to give the 
figures that stand on the chart, for the discovery is deemed 
to be important, by those who possess the secret, even to 
the present hour. We are at liberty to tell the whole 
story, with this one exception ; and we shall proceed to 
do so, with a proper regard to the pledges made in the 
premises. 

The deacon scarcely breathed as he assured himself of 
the important fact just mentioned, and his hands trembled 
to such a degree as to fairly cause the paper of the chart 
to rattle. Then he had recourse to an expedient that was 
strictly characteristic of the man. He wrote the latitude 
and longitude in a memorandum-book that he carried on 
his person ; after which he again sat down, and with great 
care erased the island and the writing from the chart, with 
the point of a penknife. This done, his mind felt infinitely 
relieved. Nor was this a]l. Charts purchased for the 
schooner were lying on a table in his own room, and he 
projected on one of them, as well as his skill would allow, 
the sealing-islands he had just removed from the chart left 
by Daggett. There he also wrote, in pencil, the important 
figures that we are commanded not to reveal. 

The second chart was then opened. It was of the West 
Indies, and particularly of certain keys. One of these last 
was pointed out in a way to leave no doubt that it was 
meant for the key indicated by the pirate. The same pro- 
hibition existing as to this key that exists in respect to the 
sealing-island, we cannot be more explicit. The writing 


THE SEA LIONS. 


53 


near this key being in pencil, it was effectually removed 
by means of India rubber. When this was done, the dea- 
con used the precaution to rub some material on the clean 
place made by his knife, on the other chart, when he be- 
lieved no eye could detect what had just been done. Hav- 
ing marked the proper key, on his own chart of the West 
Indies, he replaced the charts of Daggett in the chest, and 
locked all up again. The verbal accounts of the sick 
mariner he had already transferred to paper, and he now 
believed himself secure of all the information that was 
necessary to render him the richest man in Suffolk. 

When they next met, Mary was surprised at the gayety 
of her uncle, and that so soon after a funeral. He had a 
lightened heart, however ; for after leading him on, step 
by step, until he had gone so far as to purchase and fit out 
the schooner, Daggett had pertinaciously refused to enter 
into those minute particulars which it is even now forbid- 
den us to state, and a want of which would have rendered 
his previous expenditures useless. Death, however, had 
lifted the veil, and the deacon now believed himself secure 
in his knowledge. 

An hour or two later, Deacon Pratt and his niece were 
seated, in company with two others, at the dinner-table. 
The fare was simple, but good. Fish enters largely into 
the domestic consumption of all those who dwell near the 
water, in that part of the country ; and, on that particular 
occasion, the uncle had, in the lightness of his heart, in- 
dulged in what, for him, was a piece of extravagance. In 
all such regions there are broken-down, elderly men, who 
live by taking fish. Liquor has usually been their great 
enemy, and all have the same generic character of laziness, 
shiftless and ill-regulated exertions, followed by much idle- 
ness, and fits of intemperance, that in the end commonly 
cause their deaths. Such a man fished between Oyster 
Pond and Shelter Island, being known to all who dwelt 
within his beat, by the familiar appellation of Baiting Joe. 

Shortly after the discovery of the latitudes and longi- 
tudes on the charts, the deacon had gone to the wharf, in 
his impatience to see how Roswell Gardiner gn, on with 


54 


THE SEA LIONS. 


the Sea Lion. The young man, with his gang of hands, 
was hard at work, and a very material difference was to be 
observed in the state of the schooner, from that in which 
she was described in our opening chapter. Her rigging 
had all been set up, every spar was in its place, and alto- 
gether she had a look of preparation and completeness. 
Her water was taking in, and from time to time a country 
wagon, or an ox-cart, delivered alongside articles belong- 
ing to her stores. Of cargo, proper, there was none, or 
next to none ; a sealer carrying little besides salt, and her 
stores. In a word, the work was rapidly advancing, and 
“ Captain Gar’ner ” told his impatient owner that the craft 
would be ready to put to sea in all that week. 

“ I have succeeded in engaging the first officer I wanted,” 
added the young man, “ and he is now busy in looking up 
and shipping hands, at Stonington. We must get half a 
dozen reliable men on the main, and then we can take 
some of our neighbors here, as beginners, just to please 
them.” 

“ Yes, ship a goodly number of green hands,” said the 
deacon, zealously. “ They work at cheap ‘ lays,’ and leave 
the owners the greater profits. Well, well, Captain Gar’- 
ner, things seem to be doing well in your hands, and I will 
leave you. About two hours after dinner, I shall w'ant to 
have a word with you in private, and will thank you just 
to step across to the house, where you will be certain to 
find me. Baiting Joe seems to have hooked something 
there, in ’arnest ” 

“ That has he ! I ’ll answer for it that he has a sheeps- 
head at the end of his line that will weigh eight or ten 
pounds.” 

The words of Gardiner proved true, for Joe actually 
pulled in a fish of the description and weight he had just 
mentioned. It was this sight that, in the lightness of his 
heart, tempted the deacon to a little extravagance. Joe 
was called ashore, and after a good deal of chaffering, the 
deacon bought the prize for half a dollar. As Mary was 
celebrated for her skill in preparing this particular fish, the 
deacon, before he left the wharf, with the sheepshead hang- 


THE SEA LIONS. 55 

ing from one hand, fairly invited “ Captain Gar’ner ” so to 
timo his visit to the house, as to be present at the feast. 

Nor was this all. Before the deacon had settled with 
Joe, the Rev. Mr. Whittle came on the wharf, confessedly 
in quest of something to eat. The regular occupations of 
this divine were writing sermons, preaching, holding con- 
ferences, marrying, christening and burying, and hunting 
up “ something to eat.” About half of his precious time 
was consumed in the last of these pursuits. We do not 
wish to represent this clergyman as having an undue gas- 
tronomic propensity ; but, as having a due one, and a salary 
that was so badly paid as quite to disable him from fur- 
nishing his larder, or cellar, with anything worth mention- 
ing, in advance. Now, he was short of flour ; then, the 
potatoes were out ; next, the pork was consumed ; and 
always there was a great scarcity of groceries, and other 
necessaries of that nature. This neglect on the part of the 
parishioners, coupled with a certain improvidence on that 
of the pastor, left the clergyman’s family completely in that 
state which is usually described as being in the “ from hand 
to mouth ” condition, and which consequently occupied so 
large a portion of the good man’s time in “ providing.” 

Deacon Pratt felt a little conscious and awkward, at 
encountering the Rev. Mr. Whittle. It was not the fish 
that caused the first any concern. Fifty times had he met 
and gone by his pastor, running about with a perplexed and 
hungry look, when his own hands, or chaise, or wagon, as 
the case might be, contained enough to render the divine’s 
family happy and contented for a week. No compunctions 
of that sort ever troubled the deacon’s breast. But he had 
missed the afternoon’s meeting the last Sabbath, a delin- 
quency for which he felt an awkwardness in accounting, 
while he saw its necessity. The salutations passed as 
usual, the one party thinking intently on the absence from 
service, and the other of the sheepshead. Now it happily 
occurred to the deacon to invite his pastor also to partake 
of the fish. There was enough for all ; and, though no 
one on Oyster Pond was much in the habit of entertaining 
at dinner, it was by no means unusual for the parishioners 


56 


THE SEA LIONS. 


to have their pastor for a guest. This lucky invitation so 
occupied the parties that nothing was said about an occur- 
rence so very unusual as the deacon’s absence from “ meet- 
ing ” the “ last Sabba’ day afternoon.” 

By these simple means the party at table consisted of 
the deacon himself, Mary, Roswell Gardiner, and the Rev. 
Mr. Whittle. The fish was excellent, being so fresh and 
so skillfully prepared ; and Mary was highly complimented 
by all who ate of it, for her share in the entertainment. 
But Mary Pratt seemed sad. She had not yet recovered 
from the melancholy feeling awakened by the recent death 
and funeral ; and then her thoughts recurred, with few in- 
terruptions, to the long voyage of Roswell, and most espe- 
cially to the unhappy state of religious belief in which he 
would undertake so hazardous an expedition. Several 
times had she hinted to the clergyman her desire that he 
would “ talk to Roswell ; ” but the good man, though well- 
enough inclined, had really so much to do in “ providing,” 
that it was not a very easy matter for him to go beyond 
the beaten track, in order to probe the consciences of par- 
ticular individuals. He promised fairly, but always forgot 
to perform ; and in this he imitated closely the example 
set him by his parishioners, in reference to his own salary. 

Roswell Gardiner, therefore, remained in his unbelief ; 
or, what was tantamount to it, under the influence of a set 
of opinions that conflicted with all that the church had 
taught since the time of the apostles — at least so thought 
Mary and so think we. 

On the contrary, the pastor and the deacon were partic- 
ularly gay, for men of their habitual sobriety. Although 
those were not the days of temperance, par excellence , 
neither of the guests was what might be turned even a 
moderate drinker. For a novelty in a sailor, Roswell Gar- 
diner seldom touched anything but water, while the other 
two took their rum and water ; but it was in moderation, 
as all the gifts of God should be used. As for the intem- 
perate cry which makes it a sin to partake of any liquor, 
however prudently, it was then never heard in the land. 
On the whole, the clergy of all denominations might be set 


THE SEA LIONS. 


57 


down as brandy-and- water men, a few occasionally carrying 
out their principle to exaggeration. But the Rev. Mr. 
Whittle was a sober man, and, though he saw no great 
harm in enlivening his heart and cheering his spirits with 
brandy taken in small quantities, he was never known to 
be any the worse for his libations. It was the same with 
the deacon, though he drank rum-and-water of choice ; and 
no other beverage, Mary’s currant-wine and cider excepted, 
was ever seen on his table. 

One thing may be said of liquor, whether it be in its 
favor or not; it usually brings out all there is of the 
facetious in a man, rendering him conversible and pleasant ; 
for the time being, at least. This was apt to be peculiarly 
the case with the Rev. Mr. Whittle and his deacons. In 
their ordinary intercourse with their fellow-creatures, these 
good people had taken up the idea that, in order to be re- 
ligious, their countenances must be sombre, and that care 
and anxiety should be stamped on their faces, just as if they 
had no confidence in the efficacy of the redemption. Few, 
indeed, are they who vindicate their professions by living 
at peace with God and man ! At Oyster Pond, it was 
much the fashion to imagine that the more a person be- 
came impressed with the truths of his, and particularly 
with those of her lost condition, the more it became the 
party to be cynical, and to pry into, and comment on the 
backslidings of the entire community. This weakness, how- 
ever, was characteristic of neither the pastor nor the dea- 
con, each of whom regarded his professions too much in 
the light of a regular “ business transaction,” to descend 
into these little abuses. As for Mary, good creature, her 
humility was so profound as to cause her to believe herself 
among the weakest and least favored of all who belonged 
to meeting. 

“ I was sorry that my late journey into Connecticut pre- 
vented my seeing the poor man who was so suddenly taken 
away from the house of Widow White,” observed the Rev. 
Mr Whittle, some little time after he had made his original 
attack on the sheepshead. “ They tell me it was a hopeless 
case from the first ? ” 


58 


THE SEA LIONS. 


u So Dr. Sage considered it,” answered the deacon. 
u Captain Gar’ner volunteered to go across for the doctor 
in my boat ” — with a heavy emphasis on the possessive 
pronoun — “ and we had him to look at the patient. But, 
if the salt water be good for consumptive people, as some 
pretend, I think there is generally little hope for seamen 
whose lungs once give way.” 

“ The poor man was a mariner, was he ? I did not 
know his calling, but had rather got the impression that 
he was a husbandman. Did he belong to Oyster Pond?” 

“ No ; we have none of the name of Daggett here, which 
is a tribe on the Vineyard. Most of the Daggetts are sea- 
faring folks (folk, Anglic &) and this man was one of that 
class, I believe ; though I know nothing of him, or of hia 
pursuits, except by a word, here and there, dropped in dis- 
course.” 

The deacon thought himself safe in venturing this little 
departure from the literal truth, inasmuch as no one had 
been present, or he thought no one had ever been present 
at his many secret conferences with the deceased mariner. 
Little, however, did he understand the character of the 
Widow White, if he flattered himself with holding any dis- 
course under her roof, in which she was not to participate 
in its subject. So far from this having been the case, the 
good woman had contrived to obtain, not only a listening- 
place, but a peeping-hole, where she both heard and saw 
most of that which passed between her guest and the dea- 
con. Had her powers of comprehension been equal to her 
will, or had not her mind been prepossessed with the notion 
that the deacon must be after herself, old Suffolk would 
have rung with the marvels that were thus revealed. No/ 
only would an unknown sealing-island been laid before thf 
East-enders, but twenty such islands, and keys without 
number, each of which contained more hidden treasure 
than “ Gar’ner’s Island,” Oyster Pond, the Plumb ap<* 
Fisher’s, and all the coasts of the Sound put together ; en- 
riched as each and all of these places were thought to be, 
f>y the hidden deposits of Kidd. 

Nothing but an accident had prevented these rumors 


THE SEA LIONS. 


59 


from being circulated. It happened that on only one occa- 
sion Daggett was explicit and connected in his narrative. 
At all other times his discourse was broken, consisting 
more in allusions to what had been previously said than in 
direct and clear revelations. The widow, most unfortu- 
nately for her means of information, was with “ neighbor 
Stone ” when the connected narrative was given, and all 
that she knew was disjointed, obscure, and a little contra- 
dictory. Still, it was sufficient to set her thinking intensely 
and sufficient to produce a material influence on the future 
fortunes of the Sea Lion, as will appear in the sequel. 

“ It is always a misfortune for a human being to take 
his departure away from home and friends,” observed the 
Rev. Mr. Whittle. “ Here was an immortal soul left to 
take its last great flight, unsupported, I dare say, except by 
the prayers of a few pious neighbors. I regret having 
been absent during the time he was here. Getting home 
of a Friday only, I was compelled to devote Saturday to 
preparations for the Sabbath ; and Sabbath-night, as I un- 
derstand it, he departed.” 

“We are all in the hands of Divine Providence,” said 
the deacon, with a sober mien, “ and it is our duty to sub- 
mit. To my thinking, Oyster Pond catches more of its 
share of the poor and needy, who are landed from vessels 
passing east and west, and add considerably to our bur- 
dens.” 

This was said of a spot as much favored by Divine Prov- 
idence, in the way of abundance, as any other in highly- 
favored America. Some eight or ten such events as the 
landing of a stranger had occurred within the last half- 
century, and this was the only instance in which either of 
them had cost the deacon a cent. But so little was he 
accustomed, and so little was he disposed to give, f hat 
even a threatened danger of that sort amounted, in his 
eyes, nearly to a loss. 

“ Well,” exclaimed the literal Roswell Gardiner, “ 1 
think, deacon, th^,t we have no great reason to complain. 
Southold, Shelter Island, and all the islands about here, for 
that matter, are pretty well off as to poor, and it is little 
enough that we have to pay for their support.” 


60 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ That ’s the idea of a young man who never sees the 
tax-gatherers,” returned the deacon. ‘ “ However, there 
are islands, Captain Gar’ner, that are better off still, and I 
hope you will live to find them.” 

“ Is our young friend to sail in the Sea Lion in quest of 
any such ? ” inquired the pastor, a little curiously. 

The deacon now repented him of the allusion. But his 
heart had warmed with the subject, and the rum-and-water 
had unlocked some of its wards. So timid and nervous 
had he become, however, that the slightest indication of 
anything like a suspicion that his secrets were known, 
threw him into a sweat. 

“ Not at all — not at all — the captain goes on well- 
known and beaten ground — Sam, what is wanting, now ? ” 

“ Here is Baiting Joe corned up from the wharf, want- 
ing to see master,” returned a gray-headed negro, who had 
formerly been a slave, and who now lived about the place, 
giving his services for his support. 

“ Baiting Joe ! He is not after his sheepshead, I hope — 
if he is, he is somewhat late in the day.” 

“ Ay, ay,” put in the young sailor, laughing — “ tell him 
Sam, that no small part of it is bound to the southward 
meaning to cross the line in my company, and that right 
soon.” 

“ I paid Joe his half-dollar, certainly — you saw me pay 
him, Captain Gar’ner.” 

“ I don’t think it ’s any sich thing, master. There is a 
stranger with Joe, that he has ferried across from Shelter 
Island, and he ’s corned up from the wharf too. Yes — 
that ’s it, master.” 

A stranger ! Who could it be ? A command was given 
to admit him, and no sooner did Mary get a sight of his 
person, thai she quietly arose to procure a plate, in older 
that he, too, might have his share of the fish. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


61 


CHAPTER V. 

• 

Stranger ! I fled the home of grief, 

At Connocht Moran’s tomb to fall; 

I found the helmet of my chief, 

His bow still hanging on our wall. 

Campbell. 

“ Amphibious ! ” exclaimed Roswell Gardiner, in an 
aside to Mary, as the stranger entered the room, following 
Baiting Joe’s lead. The last only came for his glass of 
rum-and-water, served with which by the aid of the negro, 
he passed the back of his hand across bis mouth, napkin 
fashion, nodded his “ good-day,” and withdrew. As for 
the stranger, Roswell Gardiner’s term being particularly 
significant, it may be well to make a brief explanation. 

The word “ amphibious ” is, or rather was , well applied 
to many of the seamen, whalers, and sealers, who dwelt on 
the eastern end of Long Island, or the Vineyard, around 
Stonington, and, perhaps we might add, in the vicinity of 
New Bedford. The Nantucket men had not base enough, 
in the way of terra firma, to come properly within the cat- 
egory. The class to which the remark strictly applied 
were sailors without being seamen, in the severe significa- 
tion of the term. While they could do all that was indis- 
pensably necessary to take care of their vessels, were sur- 
passed by no other mariners in enterprise, and daring, and 
hardihood, they knew little about “ crowning cables,” “ car- 
rick-bends,” and all the mysteries of “ knotting,” “ graffing,” 
and “ splicing.” A regular Delaware-bay seaman would 
have turned^up his nose in contempt at many of their ways, 
wid at much of their real ignorance ; but, when it came to 
the drag, or to the oar, or to holding out in bad weather, 
or to any of the more manly qualities of the business, he 
would be certain to yield his respect to those at whom it 


62 


THE SEA LIONS. 


had originally been his disposition to laugh. It might best 
lescribe these men to say that they bore some such relation 
to the thorough -bred tar, as the volunteer bears to the reg- 
ular soldier. 

As a matter of course, the stranger was invited to take 
his seat at the table. This he did without using many 
phrases ; and Mary had reason to believe, by his appetite, 
that he thought well of her culinary skill. There was very 
little of the sheepshead left when this, its last assailant, 
shoved his plate back, the signal that he could do no more. 
He then finished a glass of rum-and- water and seemed to 
be in a good condition to transact the business that had 
brought him there. Until this moment, he had made no 
allusion to the motive of his visit, leaving the deacon full 
of conjectures. 

“ The fish of Peconic and Gar’ner’s is as good as any I 
know,” coolly observed this worthy, after certainly having 
established some claim to give an opinion on the subject 
“We think ourselves pretty well off, in this respect, on the 
Vineyard ” — 

“ On the Vineyard ! ” interrupted the deacon, without 
waiting to hear what was to follow. 

“ Yes, sir, on Martha’s Vineyard — for that ’s the place 
I come from. Perhaps I ought to have introduced myself 
a little more particularly — I come from Martha’s Vine- 
yard, and my name is Daggett.” 

The deacon fairly permitted the knife, with which he was 
jpreading some butter, to fall upon his plate. “ Daggett ” 
ind the “ Vineyard ” sounded ominously. Could it be that 
Dr. Sage had managed to get a message so far, in so short 
a time ; and had this amphibious inhabitant of the neigh- 
boring island come already to rob him of his treasure ? 
The perceptions of the deacon, at first, were far from clear : 
and he even imagined that all he had expended on the Sea 
Lion was thrown away, and that he might be ,even called 
on to give some sort of an account, in a court of chancery, 
of the information obtained from the deceased. A little 
reflection, however, sufficed to get the better of this weak- 
ness, and he made a civil inclination of his head, as muck 


THE SEA LIONS. 


68 


as to tell the stranger, notwithstanding his name and place 
of residence, that he was welcome. Of course no one but 
the deacon himself knew of the thoughts that troubled him, 
and after a very brief delay, the guest proceeded with his 
explanations of the object of his visit. 

“The Daggetts are pretty numerous on the Vineyard,” 
continued the stranger, “ and when you name one of them 
it is not always easy to tell just what family he belongs to. 
One of our coasters came into the Hull (Holmes’s Hole was 
meant) a few weeks since, and reported that she spoke an 
inward-bound brig, off New Haven, from which she heard 
that the people of that craft had put ashore at Oyster Pond, 
a seafaring man, who belonged to the Vineyard, and who 
was bound home, arter an absence of fifty years, and whose 
name was Thomas Daggett. The word passed through 
the island, and a great stir it made among all us Daggetts. 
There ’s plenty of our Vineyard people wandering about 
the ’arth, and sometimes one drops in upon the island, just 
to die. As most of them that come back bring something 
with them, it ’s gen’rally thought a good sign to hear of 
their arrival. After casting about, and talking with all the 
old folks, it has been concluded that this Thomas Daggett 
must be a brother of my father’s, who went to sea about 
fifty years since, and has never been seen or heard of since. 
He’s the only person of the name for whom we can’t ac- 
count, and the family have got me to come across to look 
him up.” 

“ I am sorry, Mr. Daggett, that you are so late,” an- 
swered the deacon, slowly, as if unwilling to give pain. 
“ Had you come last week, you might have seen and con- 
versed with your relation; or had you come early this 
morning, only, you might have attended his funeral. He 
came among us a stranger, and we endeavored to imitate 
the conduct of the good Samaritan. I believe he had all 
the comforts that Oyster Pond can give ; and, certainly, 
he had the best advice. Dr. Sage, of Sag Harbor, attended 
him in his last illness — Dr. Sage, of the Harbor ; doubt- 
less you have heard him mentioned ? ” 

u I know him by reputation, and make no doubt all was 


THE SEA LIONS. 


t>4 

done that could be done. As the sloop I named lay by the 
brig some time, in a calm, the two captains had a long talk 
together; and ours had prepared us to hear of our kins- 
man’s speedy dissolution. He was in a decline when he 
landed, and we suppose that no human skill could have 
saved him. As he had so skillful a physician, and one who 
came so far, I suppose my uncle must have left property ? ” 

This was a home-thrust ; but, fortunately for the dea- 
con, he had already prepared himself with an answer. 

“ Sea-faring men, that are landed on points and capes, 
from inward-bound vessels, are not very apt to be over- 
loaded with worldly goods,” he said, smiling. “ When a 
man prospers in that calling, he usually comes ashore at a 
wharf, in some large place, and gets into his coach, to ride 
up to some grand tavern ! I have remarked, pastor, that 
sea-faring men love comforts and free-living, unaccount- 
ably, when they can fairly get a chance at ’em.” 

“ That is natural, deacon — quite natural ; and what is 
natural, is very likely to happen. The natural man loves 
all sorts of indulgences, and these among others.” 

As there was no gainsaying this commonplace commen- 
tary on the species, it was permitted to pass unanswered. 

“ I hope my kinsman has not been a burden to any on 
Oyster Pond ? ” said the nephew, inquiringly. 

“ I cannot say that he has,” returned the deacon. “ He 
was at little cost, at first, and got along by selling a few 
odd things that he owned. As Providence had placed him 
in the dwelling of a poor widow, I thought it might be 
pleasing to the friends — and every man has some friends, I 
suppose — to settle with her. This I did, this very morn- 
ing, taking her receipt- in full, as you can see,” passing the 
paper to the stranger. “ As a sort of security for my ad- 
vances, I had the chest of the deceased removed to this 
house ; and it is now up-stairs, ready to be examined. It 
feels light, and I do not think much silver or gold will be 
found in it.” 

To own the truth, the Vineyard seaman looked a little 
disappointed. It was so natural that a man who has been 
absent fifty years should bring back the fruits of his labor 


THE SEA LIONS. 


65 


that he had expected some slight reward for the trouble he 
was now taking, to be bestowed in this particular form. 
This, however, was no£ the specific object of his visit, as 
will appear as we proceed. Keeping in view his real mo- 
tive, the nephew continued his inquiries, always putting 
his questions a little indirectly, and receiving answers that 
were as evasive and cautious as his own interrogatories. 
All this was characteristic of the wary people from which 
both had sprung, who seldem speak, in a matter of busi- 
ness, without bearing in mind all the possible construc- 
tions of what they are saying. After a discourse of some 
fifteen minutes, in which the history of the chest, in its 
outlines, was fully given, and during which the stranger pro- 
duced written evidence of his right to interfere, it was de- 
termined to make an inventory, on the spot, of the property 
left by Daggett, for the benefit of all who might have any 
interest in it. Accordingly, the whole party, including 
Mary, was soon assembled in the deacon’s own room, with 
the sea-chest placed invitingly in the centre. All eyes 
were fastened ou the lid, in curious anticipations of the 
contents ; for, the deacon excepted, all supposed that those 
contents were a profound secret. The Widow White could 
have told them better, she having rummaged that chest a 
dozen times, at least, though without abstracting even a 
pin. Curiosity had been her ruling motive, far more than 
cupidity. It is true, the good woman had a prudent regard 
to her own interests, and felt some anxiety to learn the 
prospects of her receiving the stipulated price for board — 
only $1.50 per week — but the sales of the needles, and 
palms, and carved whalebone, having kept her accounts 
reasonably square, solicitude on this particular interest was 
not at its height. No : curiosity, pure female curiosity, a 
little quickened by the passion which is engendered among 
the vulgar by the possession of a slight degree of instruc- 
tion, was really at the bottom of her researches. Not only 
had she handled every article in the chest, but she had 
read, and re-read, every paper it contained, half-a-dozen 
letters included, and made her own surmises on their nat- 
ure. Still, the good woman was very little the wiser for 
5 


66 


THE SEA LIONS. 


her inquiries. Of the great secret she knew absolutely 
nothing, unless the broken hints collected in her many 
listenings, could be so considered. But, here her igno- 
rance ceased. Every hole in a shirt, every patch in a pair 
of trousers, and every darn in a stocking, had been ex- 
amined, and its probable effect on the value of the gar- 
ment duly estimated. The only thing that had escaped 
her scrutiny was a small till, that was locked. Into that 
she could not look, and there were moments when she 
would have parted with a finger in order to overhaul it. 

“ This jacket might sell for a dollar,” had the Widow 
White calculated, “ but for the hole in the elbow ; and, 
that well patched, would bring seventy-five cents. Them 
trousers must have cost two dollars, but they ar’n’t worth 
half price now. That pee-jacket is the best article in the 
chest, and, sent across to the Harbor, about the time the 
ships are going out, it would bring enough to maintain 
Daggett a month ! ” 

Such had been the character of the widow’s visita- 
tions to the chest, though no one knew anything of her 
discoveries, not even her sister-relict, neighbor Stone. 

“ Here is the key,” said the deacon, producing that in 
strument from the drawer of a table, as if he had laid it 
carefully aside for some such moment. “ I dare say it will 
be found to fit, for I remember to have seen Daggett use 
it once or twice myself.” 

Roswell Gardiner, as the youngest man, and the one on 
whom the laboring oar ought to fall, now took the key, 
applied it to the lock, turned it without difficulty, and then 
lifted the lid. Disappointment appeared on every face but 
that of the deacon, at the meagre prospect before the com- 
pany. Not only was the chest more than half empty, but 
the articles it did contain were of the coarsest materials ; 
well worn sea-clothes that had seen their best days, and 
which had never been more than the coarse common attire 
of a foremast hand. 

“ There is little here to pay a man for crossing from the 
Vineyard,” observed Roswell Gardiner, a little drily ; for 
he did not half like the appearance of cupidity that shone 


THE SEA LIONS. 


67 


through the nephew’s tardy concern for the fate of the 
uncle. “ The last voyage has not been prosperous, I fear, 
or the owners failed before the vessel got in I What is to 
be done with all this dunnage, deacon ? ” 

It would be best to take out the contents, article by 
article,” answered the other, “ and examine each and all. 
Now that we have made a beginning with the inventory, 
it is best to go through with it.” 

The young man obeyed, calling out the name of each 
article of dress, as he raised it from its receptacle, and 
passing it over to him who stood there in the character of 
a sort of heir-at-law. The last gave each garment a sharp 
look, and prudently put his hand into every pocket, in 
order to make sure that it was empty, before he laid the 
article on the floor. Nothing was discovered for some 
time, until a small key was found in the fob of a pair of 
old “ go-asliore ” pantaloons. As there was the till to 
the chest already mentioned, and a lock on that till, the 
heir-at-law kept the key, saying nothing touching its ex- 
istence. 

“ The deceased does not appear to have been much 
afflicted with this world’s wealth,” said the Rev. Mr. 
Whittle, whose expectations, to own the truth, had been 
a little disappointed. “ This may have been all the better 
for him, when the moment of departure drew near.” 

“ I dare say he would have borne the burden cheer- 
fully,” put in Roswell Gardiner, “ to have been a little 
more comfortable. I never knew a person, seaman or 
landsman, who was ever the worse for having things snug 
about him, and for holding on to the better end of his 
cheer, as long as he could.” 

« Your notion of what is best for man as he draws near 
to his end, Captain Gar’ner, is not likely to be of the most 
approved nature. The sea does not produce many very 
orthodox divines.” 

The young sailor colored, bit his lip, cast a glance at 
Mary, and began a nearly inaudible whistle. In a moment 
he forgot the rebuke he had received, and laughingly went 
on with the inventory. 


68 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Well,” he cried, “ this is rather a poorer outfit than 
Jack is apt to carry ! ircfit, I suppose it should be called, 
as the poor fellow who owned it was inward bound, when 
he brought up on Oyster Pond. You ’ll hardly think it 
worth while, Captain Daggett, to take this dunnage across 
to the Vineyard.” 

“ It is scarce worth the trouble, though friends and rela- 
tions may set a value on it that strangers do not. I see a 
couple of charts there — will you hand them this way, if 
you please ? They may have a value with a sea-faring man, 
as old mariners sometimes make notes that are worth as 
much as the charts themselves.” 

This was said very naturally and simply ; but it gave the 
deacon a good deal of concern. Nor was this feeling at 
all lessened by the earnest, not to say eager, manner in 
which Daggett, as we shall now call this member of the 
family, spread the chart on the bed, and began to pry into 
its records. The particular chart first opened in this way 
was the one including the antarctic circle, and, of course, 
was that from which the deacon had been at so much pains 
to erase the sealing-islands tfiat the deceased mariner had 
laid down with so great precision and care. It was 
evident that the Martha’s Vineyard-man was looking for 
something that he could not find, and that he felt disap- 
pointment. Instead of looking at the chart, indeed, he 
may be said to have been peering at it, in all its holes and 
crannies, of which there were not a few, in consequence of 
the torn condition of the paper. Several minutes elapsed 
eie the investigation terminated, the stranger seeming, all 
that time, to feel no interest in the remainder of his re- 
lation’s wardrobe. 

“ This is an old chart, and of the date of 1802,” observed 
Daggett, raising himself erect, as a man who has long been 
bent takes the creaks out of his back. “ So old a chart as 
to be of little use nowaday. Our sealers have gone over 
so much of the ground to the southward of the two capes, 
as to be able to do much better than this now.” 

“ Your uncle had the appearance of an old-fashioned 
sailor,” coldly observed the deacon ; “ and it may be that 
he most liked old-fashioned charts.” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


69 


“ If such was the case he must have pretty well forgotten 
his Vineyard schooling. There is not a woman there who 
doesn’t know that the latest chart is commonly the best. I 
own I’m disapp’inted somewhat ; for the master of the sloop 
gave me to understand he had heard from the master of 
the brig, that some valuable information was to be found 
on the old gentleman’s charts.” 

The deacon started, as here was an indication that the 
deceased had talked of his knowledge to others, as well as 
to himself ! It was so natural for a man like Daggett to 
boast of what his charts were worth, that he saw the ex- 
treme probability that a difficulty might arise from this 
source. It was his cue, however, to remain silent, and let 
the truth develop itself in due course. His attention was 
not likdly to be drawn aside by the shirts and old clothes, 
for the stranger began a second time to examine the chart, 
and what was more, in the high latitudes at no great dis- 
tance from the very spot where the sealing-islands had 
been placed, and from which they had been so carefully 
erased. 

“ It is unaccountable that a man should wear out a chart 
like this, and leave so few notes on it ! ” said the Vineyard- 
man, much as one complains of a delinquency. “ Here is 
white water noted in the middle of the ocean, where I dare 
say no other white water was seen but that which is made 
by a fish, and nothing is said of any islands. What do you 
think of this, Captain Gar’ner ? ” laying his finger on the 
precise spot where the deacon had been at work so long 
that very morning erasing the islands. “ This looks well- 
fingered, if nothing else, eh ? ” 

“ It ’s a shoal laid down in dirt,” answered Roswell Gar- 
diner, laughing — “Let ’s see ; that ’s about lat. — ° — 7 , 
and long. — ° — n . There can be no known land there- 
away, as even Captain Cook did not succeed in getting as 
far south. That ’s been a favorite spot with the skipper 
for taking hold of his chart. I ’ve known one of those old- 
fashioned chaps put his hand on a chart, in that way, and 
never miss his holding ground for three years on a stretch. 
Mighty go-by-rule people are some pf our whaling- masters, 


70 


THE SEA LIONS. 


in particular, who think they know the countenances of 
some of the elderly fish, who are too cunning to let a har- 
poon get fast to ’em.” 

n You ’ve been often in them seas, I some think, Captain 
Gar’ner ? ” said the other, inquiringly. 

“ I was brought up in the business,' and have a hanker- 
ing for it yet,” returned the young man, frankly. “ Nor 
do I care so much for charts. They are well enough when 
a vessel is on her road ; but, as for whales or seals, the 
mai who wishes to find either, in these times, has to look 
for them, as I tell my owner. According to report, the 
time has been when a craft had only to get an offing to fall 
in with something that was worth putting a harpoon into ; 
but those days are gone, Captain Daggett ; and whales are 
to be looked after, out at sea, much as money is to be 
looked for ashore here.” 

“ Is the craft I saw at the wharf fitting out for a whaler, 
then ? ” 

“ She is going after luck, and will accept of it in what- 
ever form it may turn up.” 

“ She is rather small for the whaling business, though 
vessels of that size have done well, by keeping close in upon 
our own coast.” 

“We shall know better what she will do after she has 
been tried,” returned Gardiner, evasively. “ What do you 
think of her for the Banks of Newfoundland ? ” 

The Martha’s Yineyard-man gave his brother tar a quick, 
impatient glance, which pretty plainly said, “ tell that to the 
marines,” when he opened the second chart, which as yet 
had been neglected. 

“ Sure enough,” he muttered, in a low tone, though 
loud enough to be heard by the keenly attentive deacon ; 
“here it is — a chart of the West Indies, and of all the 
keys ! ” 

By this casual, spontaneous outbreaking, as it might be, 
the deacon got another clew to the stranger’s knowledge, 
that gave him increased uneasiness. He was now con- 
vinced that, by means :>f the masters of the brig and the 
sloop, such information had been sent to the relatives of 


THE SEA LIONS. 


71 


Daggett as had prepared them to expect the very revela 
tions on which he hoped to establish his own fortunes. 
To what extent these revelations had been made, of course 
he could only conjecture ; but there must have been a good 
deal of particularity to induce the individual who had come 
o\er to Oyster Pond to look into the two charts so closely. 
Under the circumstances, therefore, he felicitated himself on 
the precaution he had so early taken to erase the important 
notations from the paper. 

“ Captain Gar’ner, your eyes are younger than mine,’* 
said the Vineyard-man, holding the chart up to the light — 
“ will you be good enough to look here ? — does it not 
seem as if that key had been noted, and the words rubbed 
off the chart ? ” 

This caused the deacon to peer over Roswell Gardiner’s 
shoulder, and glad enough was he to ascertain that the 
stranger had placed his finger on a key that must lie sev- 
eral hundred miles from that which was supposed to hold 
the buried treasure of the pirates. Something like an 
erasure did appear at the indicated point ; but the chart 
was so old and dirty, little satisfaction could be had by 
examining it. Should the inquirer settle down on the key 
he evidently had in his eye, all would be well, since it was 
far enough from the spot really noted. 

“It is strange that so old a seafaring man should wear 
out a chart, and make no observation on it ! ” repeated the 
stranger, who was both vexed and at a loss what to conject- 
ure. “ All my charts are written over and marked off, just 
as if I meant to get out an edition for myself.” 

“ Men differ in their tastes and habits,” answered Ros- 
well Gardiner, carelessly. “ Some navigators are forever 
finding rocks, and white water, and scribbling on their 
charts, or in the newspapers, when they get back ; but I 
never knew any good come of it. The men who make the 
charts are most to be trusted. For my part, I would not 
give a sixpence for a note made by a man who passes a 
$hoal or a rock, in a squall or a gale.” 

“ What would you say to the note of a sealer who should 
lay down an island where the seals lie about on the beach 
I 


72 


THE SEA LIONS. 


like pigs in a pen, sunning themselves ? Would you not 
call a chart so noted a treasure ? ” 

“That would alter the case, sure enough,” returned 
Gardiner, laughing ; “ though I should not think of looking 
into this chest for any such riches. Most of our masters 
navigate too much at random to make their charts of any 
great value. They can find the place they look for them- 
selves, but don’t seem to know how to tell other people the 
road. 1 have known my old man lay down a shoal that he 
fancied he saw, quite a degree out of the way. Now such 
a note as that would do more harm than good. It might 
make a foul wind of a fair one, and cause a fellow to go 
about, or wear ship, when there was not the least occasion 
in the world for doing anything of the sort.” 

“ Ay, ay ; this will do for nervous men, who are always 
thinking they see danger ahead ; but it is different with 
islands that a craft has actually visited. I do not see much 
use, Deacon Pratt, in your giving yourself any farther 
trouble. My uncle was not a very rich man, I perceive, 
and I must go to work and make my own fortune if I 
wish more than I ’ve got already. If there is any demand 
against the deceased, I am ready to discharge it.” 

This was coming so much to the point that the deacon 
hardly knew what to make of it. He recollected his own 
ten dollars, and the covetousness of his disposition so far 
got the better of his prudence as to induce him to mention 
the circumstance. 

“ Dr. Sage may have a charge — no doubt has one, that 
ought to be settled, but your uncle mainly paid his way as 
he went on. I thought the widow who took care of him 
was entitled to something extra, and I handed her ten dol- 
lars this morning, which you may repay to me or not, just 
as you please.” 

Captain Daggett drew forth his wallet and discharged 
the obligation on the spot. He then replaced the charts, 
and, without opening the till of the chest, he shut down 
the lid, locked it, and put the key in his pocket, saying that 
he would cause the whole to be removed, much as if he 
felt anxious to relieve the deacon of an incumbrance. This 


THE SEA LIONS. 


73 


done, he asked a direction to the dwelling of the Widow 
White, with whom he wished to converse, ere he left the 
Point. 

u 7 shall have the questions of so many cousins to answer, 
when I get home,” he said, smiling, “ that it will never do 
for me to go back without taking all the talk I can get 
with me. If you will be kind enough to show me the way, 
Captain Gar’ner, I will promise to do as much, for you, 
when you come to hunt up the leavings of some old rela- 
tion on the Vineyard.” 

Roswell Gardiner, very cheerfully complied, not observ- 
ing the look of dissatisfaction with which his owner lis- 
tened to the request. Away the two went, then, and were 
soon at the widow’s door. Here the young man left his 
companion, having duty to attend to on board the Sea 
Lion. The Widow White received her guest with lively 
interest, it forming one of the greatest pleasures of her 
existence to be imparting and receiving intelligence. 

“ I dare say you found my uncle a companionable man,” 
observed the captain, as soon as amicable relations were 
established between the parties, by means of a few flatter- 
ing remarks on one side and on the other. “ The Vine- 
yard folks are generally quite conversible.” 

“ That he was, Captain' Daggett ; and when the deacon 
had not been over to perplex him, and wake up the worldly 
spirit in him, he was as well inclined to preparation as any 
sick person I ever waited on. To be sure it was different 
arter the deacon had paid one of his visits.” 

“ Was Deacon Pratt in the habit of coming to read and 
pray with the sick ? ” 

“ He pray ! I don’t believe he as much as went through 
a single sentence of a prayer in all his visits. Their whull 
talk was about islands and seals, when they was by them- 
selves.” 

“ Indeed ! ” exclaimed the nephew, manifesting a new 
interest in the discourse. “ And what could they find to 
say on such subjects ? Islands and seals were a strange 
topic for a dying man ! ” 

“ I know it ” — answered the widow, sharply. “ I 


74 


THE SEA LIONS. 


know’d it at the time ; but what could a lone woman do 
to set ’em right; and he a deacon of the meetin’ the whull 
time ? If they would talk of worldly things at such times, 
it was n’t for one like me to put ’em right.” 

“ Then this discourse was held openly in your presence 
— . before your face, as it might be, ma’am ? ” 

“ I can’t say that it was just that ; nor was it altogether 
when my back was turned. They talked, and I overheard 
what was said, as will happen when a body is about, you 
know.” 

The stranger did not press the point, having been brought 
up in what might almost be termed a land of listeners. An 
island, that is cut off from much communication with the 
rest of the earth, and from which two thirds of the males 
must be periodically absent, would be very likely to reach 
perfection in the art of gossiping, which includes that of 
the listener. 

“Yes,” he answered, “one picks up a good deal, he 
does n’t know how. So they talked of islands and seals ? ” 

Thus questioned, the widow cheerfully opened her stores 
of knowledge. As she proceeded in her account of the 
secret conferences between Deacon Pratt and her late in- 
mate, her zeal became quickened, and she omitted nothing 
that she had ever heard, besides including a great deal that 
she had not heard. But her companion was accustomed to 
such narratives, and knew reasonably well how to make 
allowances. He listened with a determination not to be- 
lieve more than half of what she said, and by dint of long 
experience, he succeeded in separating the credible portions 
of the woman’s almost breathless accounts, from those that 
ought to have been regarded as incredible, with a surpris- 
ing degree of success. The greatest difficulty in the way 
of comprehending the Widow White’s report, arose from 
the fact that she had altogether missed the preliminary and 
most explicit conference. This left so much to be under- 
stood and inferred, that, in her own efforts to supply the 
deficiencies, she made a great deal of confusion in the state- 
ments. Captain Daggett was fully assured that the deacon 
knew of the existence of the sealing-island, at least ; though 


THE SEA LIONS. 


75 


he was in doubt whether the rumor that had been brought 
to him, touching the buried treasure, had also been im- 
parted to this person. The purchase and equipment of the 
Sea Lion, taken in connection with the widow’s account, 
were enough, of themselves, to convince one of his experi- 
ence and foresight, that an expedition after seal was then 
fitting out, on the information derived from his deceased 
relative. Of this much he had no doubt ; but he was not 
able to assure himself, quite so satisfactorily, that the key i 
was to be looked at by the way. 

The interview between Captain Daggett and the Widow 
White lasted more than an hour. In that time the former 
had gleaned all the information the latter could give, and 
they parted on the best terms in the world. It is true that 
the captain gave the widow nothing — he had acquitted his 
conscience on this score, by repaying the deacon the money 
the last had advanced — but he listened in the most ex- 
emplary manner to all she had to say ; and, with a certain 
class of vehement talkers, the most favored being in the 
world is your good listener. Interest had given the stran- 
ger an air of great attention, and the delighted woman 
had poured out her torrent of words in a way that gratified, 
in the highest degree, her intense desire to be imparting 
information. When they separated, it was with an under- 
standing that letters, on the same interesting subject, should 
pass between them. 

That afternoon, Captain Daggett found means to remove 
the chest of his late kinsman across the bays, to Sag Har- 
bor, whither he proceeded himself by the same conveyance. 
There, he passed an hour or two in making inquiries touch- 
ing the state of equipment, and the probable time of the 
departure of the Sea Lion. The fitting out of this 
schooner was the cause of a good deal of discourse in all 
that region, and the Martha’s Vineyard-man heard num- 
berless conjectures, but very little accurate information. 
On the whole, however, he arrived at the conclusion that 
the Sea Lion would sail within the next ten days ; that her 
voyage was to be distant ; that her absence was expected 
to exceed a twelve-month ; and that it was thought she had 


76 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Borne other scheme in view, in addition to that of sealing. 
That night, this hardy mariner — half agriculturist as he 
was — got into his whale-boat, and sailed for the Vineyard, 
all alone, taking the chest with him. This was nothing, 
however ; for quite often, before, had he been off at sea, 
in his boat, alone, looking out for inward-bound vessels to 


THE SEA LIONS. 


77 


CHAPTER VI. 

Launch thy bark, mariner! 

Christian, God speed thee! 

Let loose the rudder-bands, 

. Good angels lead thee! 

Set thy sails warily, 

Tempests will come; 

Steer thy course steadily, 

Christian, steer home! 

Mrs. Southey. 

The visit of Captain Daggett, taken in connection with 
all that he had said and done, while on Oyster Pond, and 
at Sag Harbor, had the effect greatly to hasten the equip- 
ments of the Sea Lion. Deacon Pratt knew the charac- 
ters of the seamen of the island too well, to trifle in a 
matter of so much moment. How much the Vineyard 
folk had been told, in reference to his great secrets, he did 
not know ; but he felt assured that they knew enough, and 
had learned enough in this visit, to quicken all their de- 
sires for riches, and to set them in motion towards the 
antarctic circle. With such a people, distance and difficul- 
ties are of no account ; a man who has been cradling oats, 
to-day, in his own retired fields, where one would think 
ambition and the love of change could never penetrate, 
being ready to quit home at twenty-four hours’ notice, as- 
suming the marling-spike as he lays aside the fork, and 
setting forth for the uttermost confines of the earth, with 
as little hesitation as another might quit his home for an 
ordinary journey of a week. Such, did the deacon well 
know,' was the character of those with whom he had now 
to deal, and he foresaw the necessity of the utmost cau- 
tion, perseverance, diligence, and activity. 

Philip Hazard, the mate mentioned by Roswell Gardiner, 
was enjoined to lose no time ; and the men engaged for 


78 


THE SEA LIONS. 


the voyage soon began to cross the Sound, and to make 
their appearance on board the schooner. As for the craft 
herself, she had all that was necessary for her wants below 
hatches ; and the deacon began to manifest some impatience 
for the appearance of two or three men of particular ex- j 
cellence, of whom Phil Hazard was in quest, and whom j 
Captain Gardiner had made it a point should be obtained, j 
Little did the worthy owner suspect that the Vineyard 1 
people were tampering with these very hands, and keeping I 
them from coming to terms, in order that they might fit 1 
out a second Sea Lion, which they had now been prepar- I 
ing for near a month ; having purchased her at New Bed- I 
ford, with a view to profit by the imperfect information j 
that had reached them, through the masters of the brig and 
sloop. The identity in the name was accidental, or, it j 
might be better to say, had been naturally enough sug- J 
gested by the common nature of the enterprise ; but, once I 
existing, it had been the means of suggesting to the Vine- 1 
yard company a scheme of confounding the vessels, out of j 
which they hoped to reap some benefit, but which it would 
be premature now fully to state. 

After a delay of several days, Hazard sent across from I 
Stonington a man by the name of Watson, who had the 
reputation of being a first-class sealer. This accession 1 
was highly prized ; and, in the absence of his mates, both 
of whom were out looking for hands, Roswell Gardiner, to 
whom command was still novel, consulted freely with this ' 
experienced and skillful mariner. It was fortunate for the 
schemes of the deacon that he had left his young master j 
still in the dark, as respected his two great secrets. Gar- 1 
diner understood that the schooner was to go after seals, j 
sea-lions, sea-elephants, and all animals of the genus phoca ; 1 
but he had been told nothing concerning the revelations j 
of Daggett, or of the real motives that had induced him to j 
go so far out of his usual course, in the pursuit of gain, i 
We say it was fortunate that the deacon had been so wary ; 
for Watson had no intention whatever to sail out of Oyster 
Pond, having been actually engaged as the second officer 
of the rival Sea Lion, which had been purchased at New 


THE SEA LIONS. 


79 


Bedford, and was then in an active state of forwardness in 
its equipments, with a view to compete with the craft that 
was still lying so quietly and unconsciously alongside of 
Deacon Pratt’s wharf. In a word, Watson was a spy, sent 
across by the Vineyard-men, to ascertain all he could of 
the intentions of the schooner’s owner, to worm himself into 
Gardiner’s confidence, and to report, from time to time, 
the state of things generally, in order that the East-endera 
might not get the start of his real employers. It is a com- 
mon boast of Americans that there are no spies in their 
country. This may be true in the every-day signification 
of the term, though it is very untrue in all others. This is 
probably the most spying country in Christendom, if the 
looking into other people’s concerns be meant. Extensive 
and recognized systems of espionage exist among mer- 
chants ; and nearly every man connected with the press 
has enlisted himself as a sort of spy in the interests of 
politics — many, in those of other concerns, also. The 
reader, therefore, is not to run away with impressions 
formed under general assertions that will scarce bear in- 
vestigation, and deny the truth of pictures that are drawn 
with daguerreotype fidelity, because they do not happen to 
reflect the cant of the day. The man Watson, who had 
partially engaged to go out in the Sea Lion, Captain Ros- 
well Gardiner, was not only a spy, but a spy sent covertly 
into an enemy’s camp, with the meanest motives, and with 
intentions as hostile as the nature of the circumstances 
would permit. 

Such was the state of things on Oyster Pond for quite a 
week after the nephew had been to look after the effects 
of the deceased uncle. The schooner was now quite ready 
for sea, and her master began to talk of hauling off from 
the wharf. It is true, there was no very apparent reason 
why this step, preliminary to sailing, should be taken in 
that port, wdiere there were so few opportunities for her 
people’s running into excesses ; but it sounded ship-shape, 
and Captain Gardiner had been heard to express an inten- 
tion to that effect. The men arrived but slowly from tho 
main, and something like impatience was manifested by 


80 


THE SEA LIONS. 


the young commander, who had long before got all hia 
green hands, or youths from the neighborhood, on board, 
and was gradually breaking them into the ways of a vessel. 
Indeed, the best reason he could give to himself for “ haul- 
ing off,” was the practice it might give to these lads with 
the oars. 

“I don’t know what Hazard and Green are about” — 
called out Roswell Gardiner to his owner, the first being 
on the quarter-deck of the Sea Lion, and the last on the 
wharf, while Watson was busy in the main-rigging ; 
“ they ’ve been long enough on the main to ship a dozen 
crews for a craft of this size, and we are still short two 
hands, even if this man sign the papers, which he has not 
yet done. By the way, Watson, it’s time we saw your 
handwriting.” 

“ I ’m a poor scholar, Captain Gar’ner,” returned the 
cunning mariner, “ and it takes time for me to make out 
even so small a matter as my name.” 

“ Ay, ay ; you are a prudent fellow, and I like you all 
the better for it. But you have had leisure, and a plenty 
of it too, to make up your mind. You must know the 
schooner from her keel up by this time, and ought to be 
able to say now that you are willing to take luck’s chances 
in her.” 

“ Ay, ay, sir ; that ’s all true enough, so far as the craft 
is concerned. If this was a West India v’y’ge, I would n’t 
stand a minute about signing the articles; nor should I 
make much question if the craft was large enough for a 
common whalin’ v’y’ge ; but sealin’ is a different business, 
and one onprofitable hand may make many an onprofitable 
lay.” 

“ All this is true enough ; but we do not intend to take 
any unprofitable hands, or to have any unprofitable lays. 
You know me ” — 

“ Oh ! if all was like you, Captain Gar’ner, I would n’t 
stand even to wipe the pen. Tour repitation was made in 
the southward, and no man can dispute your skill.” 

“ Well, both mates are old hands at the business, and 
we intend that all the 1 ables ’ shall be as good men as you 
hre yourself.” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


81 


u It needs good men, sir, to be operatin’ among some of 
them sea-elephants ! Sea-dogs ; for sea-dogs is my say in’. 
They tell of seals getting source ; but I say, it ’s all in 
knowin’ the business — ‘ There ’s young Captain Gar’ner/ 
says I , i that ’s fittin’ out a schooner for some onknown part 
of the world/ says I, ‘ maybe for the South Pole, for-ti- 
know, or for some sich out-of-the-way hole ; now he ’ll 
come badk full, or I ’m no judge o’ the business/ says I.” 

“ Well, if this is your way of thinking, you have only to 
clap your name to the articles, and take your lay.” 

“ Ay, ay, sir ; when I ’ve seed my shipmates. There 
is n’t the business under the sun that so much needs that 
every man should be true, as the sea-elephant trade. 
Smaller animals may be got along with, with a narvous 
crew, perhaps ; but when it comes to the raal old bulls, or 
bull-dogs, as a body might better call ’em, give me stout 
hearts, as well as stout hands.” 

>>“ Well, now, to my notion, Watson, it is less dangerous 
to take a sea-elephant than to fasten to a regular old bull- 
whale, that may be has had half a dozen irons in him 
already.” 

“ Yes, sir, that ’s sometimes skeary work, too ; though I 
don’t think so much of a whale as I do of a sea-elephant, 
or of a sea-lion. ‘ Let me know my shipmates/ say I, 4 on 
a sealin’ expedition.’ ” 

“ Captain Gar’ner,” said the deacon, who necessarily 
overheard this discourse, “ you ought to know at once 
whether this man is to go in the schooner or not. The 
mates believe he is, and may come across from the main 
without a hand to take his place should he leave us. The 
thing should be settled at once.” 

“ I ’m willing to come to tarms this minute,” returned 
Watson, as boldly as if he were perfectly sincere ; “ only 
let me understand what I undertake. If I know’d to what 
islands the schooner was bound, it might make a difference 
in my judgment.” 

This was a well-devised question of the spy’s, though it 
failed of its effect, in consequence of the deacon’s great 
caution in not having yet told his secret, even to the mas- 
6 


82 


THE SEA LIONS. 


ter of his craft. Had Gardiner known exactly where he 
was about to go, the desire to secure a hand as valuable as 
Watson might have drawn from him some imprudent reve- 
lation ; but knowing nothing himself, he was obliged to 
make the best answer he could. 

“ Going,” he said ; “ why, we are going after seals, to 
be sure ; and shall look for them where they are most to 
be found7~ As experienced a hand as yourself ought to 
know where that is.” 

“ Ay, ay, sir,” answered the fellow, laughing — “ it ’s just 
neither here nor there — that ’s all.” 

“ Captain Gar’ner,” interrupted the deacon, solemnly, 
u this is trifling, and we must come to terms with this man, 
or write to Mr. Hazard to engage another in his place. 
Come ashore, sir ; I have business with you up at the 
house.” 

The serious manner in which this was uttered took both 
the captain and the man a little by surprise. As for the 
first, he went below to conceal his good-looking throat be- 
neath a black handkerchief, before he followed the deacon 
where it was most probable he should meet with Mary. 
While he was thus occupied, Watson came down out of the 
main-rigging and descended into the forecastle. As the 
young captain was walking fast towards the dwelling of 
Deacon Pratt, Watson came on deck again, and hailed 
Baiting Joe, who was fishing at no great distance from the 
wharf. In a few minutes Watson was in Joe’s boat, bag 
and all — he had not brought a chest on board — - and was 
under way for the Harbor. From the Harbor he sailed 
the same evening, in a whale-boat that was kept in readi- 
ness for him, carrying the news over to Holmes’s Hole 
that the Sea Lion, of Oyster Pond, would certainly be 
ready to go out as early as the succeeding week. Although 
Watson thus seemingly deserted his post, it was with a 
perfect understanding with his real employers. He had 
need of a few days to make his own preparations before he 
left the 41st degree of north latitude to go as far south as 
a vessel could proceed. He did not, however, leave his 
post entirely vacant. One of Deacon Pratt’s neighbors 


^E SEA LIONS. 


83 


had undertaken, for a consideration, to let the progress of 
I events be known, and tidings were sent by every oppor- 
tunity, reporting the movements of the schooner, and the 
prospects of her getting to sea. These last were not quite 
as flattering as Roswell Gardiner hoped and believed, the 
agents of the Vineyard company having succeeded in get- 
ting away two of Hazard’s best men ; and as reliable 
sealers were not to be picked up as easily as pebbles on a 
beach, the delay caused by this new stroke of management 
might even be serious. All this time the Sea Lion, of 
Holmes’s Hole, was getting ahead with untiring industry, 
and there was every prospect of her being ready to go out 
as soon as her competitor. But to return to Oyster Pond. 

Deacon Pratt was in his porch ere Roswell Gardiner 
overtook him. There the deacon gave his young friend to 
understand he had private business of moment, and led the 
way at once into his own apartment, which served the pur- 
poses of office, bed-room and closet ; the good man being 
accustomed to put up his petition to the throne of Mercy 
there, as well as transact all his temporal affairs. Shutting 
the door, and turning the key, not a little to Roswell’s sur- 
prise, the old man faced his companion with a most earnest 
and solemn look, telling him at once that he was now about 
to open his mind to him in a matter of the last concern. 
The young sailor scarce knew what to think of it all ; but 
he hoped that Mary was, in some way, connected with the 
result. 

“ In the first place, Captain Gar’ner,” continued the 
deacon, “ I must ask you to take an oath.” 

“ An oath, deacon ! — This is quite new for the sealing 
business — as ceremonious as Uncle Sam’s people.” 

“ Yes, sir, an oath ; and an oath that must be most relig- 
iously kept, and on this Bible. Without the oath, our 
whole connection must fall through, Captain Gar’ner.” 

“ Rather than that should happen, deacon, I will cheer- 
fully take two oaths ; one to clench the other.” * 

“ It is well. I ask you, Roswell Gar’ner, to swear on 
this Holy Book that the secrets I shall now reveal to you 
shall not be told to any other, except in a manner pre- 


84 


THE SEA LIONS. 


scribed by myself ; that in no other man’s employment win 
you profit by them ; and that you will in all things con- 
nected with them be true and faithful to your engagements 
to me and to my interests — so help you God ! ” 

Roswell Gardiner kissed the book, while he wondered 
much, and was dying with curiosity to know what was to 
follow. This great point secured, the deacon laid aside the 
sacred volume, opened a drawer, and produced the two all- 
important charts, to which he had transferred the notes of 
Daggett. 

“ Captain Gar’ner,” resumed the deacon, spreading the 
chart of the antarctic sea on the bed, “you must have 
known me and my ways long enough to feel some surprise 
at finding me, at my time of life, first entering into the 
shipping concern.” 

“ If I ’ve felt any surprise, deacon, it is that a man of 
your taste and judgment should have held aloof so long 
from the only employment that I think fit for a man of 
real energy and character.” 

“ Ay, this is well enough for you to say, as a seaman 
yourself ; though you will find it hard to persuade most of 
those who live on shore into your own ways of thinking.” 

“ That is because people ashore think and act as they 
have been brought up to do. Now, just look at that 
chart, deacon ; see how much of it is water, and how little 
of it is land. Minister Whittle told us, only the last Sab- 
bath, that nothing was created without a design, and that 
a wise dispensation of Divine Providence was to be seen 
in all the works of nature. Now, if the land was intended 
to take the lead of the water, would there have been so 
much more of the last than of the first, deacon ? That 
was the idea that came into my mind when I heard the 
minister’s words ; and had not Mary ” — 

“ What of Mary ? ” demanded the deacon, perceiving 
that the young man paused. 

* “ Only I was in hopes that what you had to say, deacon, 
might have some connection with her.” 

“ What I have to say is better worth hearing than fifty 
Marys. As to my niece, Gar’ner, you are welcome to her 


THE SEA LIONS. 


85 


if she will have you ; and why she does not is to me unac- 
i countable. But you see that chart — look at it well, and 
tell me if you find anything new or remarkable about it.” 

“ It looks like old times, deacon, and here are many 
: places that I have visited and know. What have we here ? 

Islands laid down in pencil, with the latitude and longitude 
! in figures ! Who says there is land, thereaway, Deacon 
| Pratt, if I may be so free as to ask the question ? ” 

“ 1 do — and capital good land it is, for a sealing craft 
; to get alongside of. Them islands, Gar’ner, may make 
your fortune, as well as mine. No matter how I know 
they are there — it is enough that I do know it, and that 
I wish you to carry the Sea Lion to that very spot, as 
straight as you can go ; fill her up with elephant’s oil, 
ivory, and skins, and bring her back again as fast as she 
j can travel.” 

“ Islands in that latitude and longitude ! ” said Boswell 
| Gardiner, examining the chart as closely as if it were of 
very fine print indeed — “I never heard of any such land 
before ! ” 

“ ’T is there, notwithstanding ; and like all land in dis- 
tant seas that men have not often troubled, plentifully gar- 
nished with what will pay the mariner well for his visit.” 

“ Of that I have little doubt, should there be actually 
any land there. It may be a Cape Fly Away that some 
fellow has seen in thick weather. The ocean is full of 
such islands ! ” 

“ This is none of them. It is bony fidy ’arth, as I know 
from the man who trod it. You must take good care, 
Gar’ner, and not run the schooner on it ” — with a small 
chuckling laugh, such as a man little accustomed to this 
species of indulgence uses, when in high good-humor. I 
am not rich enough to buy and fit out Sea Lions for yoa 
to cast ’em away.” 

“ That ’s a high latitude, deacon, to carry a craft into. 
Cook, himself, fell short of that, somewhat ! ” 

“ Never mind Cook — he was a king’s navigator — my 
man was an American sealer ; and what he has .once seen 
he knows where to find again. There are the islands — 


86 


THE SEA LIONS. 


three In number ; and there you will find ’em, with ani- 
mals on their shores as plenty as clam-shells on the south 
beach.” 

“ I hope it may be so. If land is there, and you ’ll risk 
the schooner, I ’ll try to get a look at it. I shall want you 
to put it down in black and white, however, that I ’m to go 
as high as this.” 

“ You shall have any authority a man may ask. On 
that point there can be no difficulty between me and you. 
The risk of the schooner must be mine of course ; but I 
rely on you to take as good care of her as a man can. Go 
then, direct, to that point, and fill up the schooner. But, 
Gar’ner, my business does n’t end with this ! As soon as 
the schooner is full, you will come to the southward, and 
get her clear of everything like ice as fast as possible.” 

“ That I shall be very likely to do, deacon, though you 
had said nothing on the subject.” 

“Yes, by all accounts them are stormy seas, and the 
sooner a body is shut of them the better. And now, Gar’- 
ner, I must swear you again. I have another secret to tell 
you, and an oath must go with each. Kiss this sacred 
volume once more, and swear to me never to reveal to 
another that which I am about to reveal to you, unless it 
may be in a court of law, and at the command of justice, 
so help you God.” 

“ What, a second oath, deacon ! — You are as bad as 
the custom-houses, which take you on all tacks, and don’t 
believe you when you ’ve done. Surely, I ’m sworn in 
already.” 

“ Kiss the book, and swear to what I have put to you,” 
said the deacon, sternly, “ or never go to sea in a craft of 
mine. Never to reveal what I shall now tell you, unless 
compelled by justice, so help you God ! ” 

Thus cornered, Roswell Gardiner hesitated no longer, 
but swore as required, kissing the book gravely and rever- 
ently. This was the young man’s first command, and he 
was not going to lose it on account of so small a matter as 
swearing to keep his owner’s secrets. Having obtained 
the | ledge, the deacon now produced the second chart, 


THE SEA LIONS. 87 

which was made to take the place of the other on the 
bed. 

“ There ! ” he exclaimed, in a sort of triumph — “ that 
is the real object of your voyage ! ” 

“ That key ! Why, deacon, that is in north latitude — ° 
— fr , and you make a crooked road of it truly, when you 
tell me to go as far south as — ° — ,r , in order to reach it.” 

“ It is well to have two strings to a body’s bow. When 
you hear what you are to bring from that key, you will 
understand why I send you south, before you are to come 
here to top off your cargo.” 

“ It must be with turtle, then,” said Roswell Gardiner, 
laughing. “ Nothing grows on these keys but a few stunted 
shrubs, and nothing is ever to be found on them but turtle. 
Once in a while a fellow may pick up a few turtle, if he 
happen to hit the right key.” 

“ Gar’ner,” rejoined the deacon, still more solemnly — 
“ that island, low and insignificant as it is, contains treasure. 
Pirates made their deposits here a long time ago, and the 
knowledge of that fact is now confined to myself.” 

The young man stared at the deacon as if he had some 
doubts whether the old man were in his right mind. He 
knew the besetting weakness of his character well, and had 
no difficulty in appreciating the influence of such a belief 
as that he had just expressed, on his feelings ; but it 
seemed so utterly improbable that he, living on Oyster 
Pond, should learn a fact of this nature, which was con- 
cealed from others, that, at first, he fancied his owner had 
been dreaming of money until its images had made him 
mad. Then he recollected the deceased mariner, the dea- 
con’s many conferences with him, the interest he had al- 
ways appeared to take in the man, and the suddenness, as 
well as the time, of the purchase of the schooner ; and he 
at once obtained a clew to the whole affair. 

“ Daggett has told you this, Deacon Pratt ” — said Gar- 
diner, in his off-hand way. “ And he is the man who has 
told you of those sealing-islands, too ? ” 

“ Admitting it to be so, why not Daggett as well as any 
other man ? ” 


88 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Certainly, if he knew what he was saying to be true ; 
but the yarn of a sailor is not often to be taken for gospel .’ 1 

“ Daggett was near his end, and cannot be classed with 
those who talk idly in the pride of their health and 
strength — men who are ever ready to say — ‘ Tush, God 
has forgotten.’ ” 

“ Why was this told to you, when the man had natural 
friends and relatives by the dozen over on the Vineyard ? ” 
“ He had been away from the Vineyard and them rela- 
tives fifty years ; a length of time that weakens a body’s 
feelings considerably. Take you away from Mary only a 
fourth part of that time, and you would forget whether her 
eyes are blue or black, and altogether how she looks.” 

“ If I should, a most miserable and contemptible dog 
should I account myself ! No, deacon, twice fifty years 
would not make me forget the eyes or the looks of Mary ! ” 
“Ay, so all youngsters think, and feel, and talk. But 
let ’em try the world, and they ’ll soon find out their own 
foolishness. But Daggett made me his confidant because 
Providence put me in his way, and because he trusted to 
being well enough to go in the schooner, and to turn the 
expedition to some account in his own behalf.” 

“ Had the man the impudence to confess that he had 
been a pirate, and helped to bury treasure on this key ? ” 

“ That is not, by any means, his history. Daggett was 
never a pirate himself, but accident placed him in the same 
prison and same room as that in which a real pirate was 
confined. There the men became friends, and the con- 
demned prisoner, for such he was in the end, gave this 
secret to Daggett as the last service he could do him.” 

“ I hope, deacon, you do not expect much in the way of 
profit from this part of the voyage ? ” 

“I expect the most from it, Gar’ner, as you will too, 
when you come to hear the whole story.” 

The deacon then went into all the particulars of the 
revelations made by the pirate to his fellow-prisoner, much 
as they had been given by Daggett to himself. The young 
man listened to this account at first with incredulity, then 
with interest ; and finally with a feeling that induced him 


THE SEA LIONS. 


89 


to believe that there might be more truth in the narrative 
than he had originally supposed possible. This change 
was produced by the earnest manner of the deacon as 
much as by the narrative itself ; for he had become graphic 
under the strong impulse of that which, with him, was a 
master passion. So deep had been the impression made 
on the mind of the old man by Daggett’s account, and so 
intense the expectations thereby awakened, that he omitted 
nothing, observed the most minute accuracy in all his de- 
tails, and conveyed just as distinct impressions to his lis- 
tener, as had been conveyed to himself, when the story was 
first told to him. 

“ This is a most extr’or’nary account, take it on what- 
ever tack you will ! ” exclaimed Roswell Gardiner, as soon 
as a pause in the deacon’s story enabled him to put in an- 
other word. “ The most extr’or’nary tale I ever listened 
to ! How came so much gold and silver to be abandoned 
for so long a time ? ” 

“ Them three officers hid it there, fearing to trust their 
own crew with it in their vessel. Their pretense was to 
stop for turtle, just as you must do ; whilst the hands were 
turtling, the captain and his mates walked about the key, 
and took occasion to make their deposits in that hole on 
the coral rock, as you have heard me say. Oh ! it ’s all 
too natural not to be true ! ” 

Roswell Gardiner saw that the old man’s hopes were too 
keenly excited to be easily cooled, and that his latent cov- 
etousness was thoroughly awakened. Of all the passions 
to which poor human nature is the slave, the love of gold 
is that which endures the longest, and is often literally car- 
ried with us to the verge of the grave. Indeed, in minds 
so constituted originally as to submit to an undue love of 
money, the passion appears to increase, as others more 
dependent on youth, and strength, and enterprise, and am- 
bition, gradually become of diminished force, slowly but 
surely usurping the entire sway over a being that was once 
subject to many masters. Thus had it been with the dea- 
con. Nearly all his passions now centred in this one. He 
no longer cared for preferment in politics, though once it 


90 


THE SEA LIONS. 


had been the source of a strong desire to represent Suffolk 
at Albany ; even the meeting, and its honors, was loosen- 
ing its hold on his mind ; while his fellow-men, his kindred 
included, were regarded by him as little more than so many 
competitors, or tools. 

“ A lie may be made to seem very natural,” answered 
Roswell Gardiner, “ if it has been put together by one 
who understands knotting and splicing in such matters. 
Did this Daggett name the amount of the sum that he sup- 
posed the pirates may have left on that key ? ” 

“ He did,” returned the deacon, the whole of his narrow 
and craving soul seeming to gleam in his two sunken eyes 
as he answered. “ According to the account of the pirate, 
there could not have been much less than thirty thousand 
dollars, and nearly all of it in good doubloons of the coin 
of the kings — doubloons that will weigh their full sixteens 
to the pound — ay, and to spare ! ” 

“ The Sea Lion’s cargo, well chosen and well stowed, 
would double that, deacon, if the right animals can only be 
found” 

“May be so — but, just think, Gar’ner — this will be in 
good bright coined gold ! ” 

“ But what right can we have to that gold, even admit- 
ting that it is there, and can be found ? ” 

“Right?” exclaimed the deacon, staring. “Does not 
that which Divine Providence gives man become his own ? ” 
“ By the same rule it might be said Divine Providence 
gave it to the pirates. There must be lawful owners to all 
this money, if one could only find them.” 

“ Ay, if one could only find them. Harkee, Gar’ner, 
have you spent a shilling or a quarter lately ?” 

“ A good many of both, deacon,” answered the young 
man, again betraying the lightness of his heart with a 
laugh. “ I wish I had more of your saving temper, and 1 
might get rich. Yes, I spent a quarter only two hours 
since, in buying fish for the cabin, of old Baiting Joe.” 

“ Well, tell me the impression of that quarter. Had it 
a head, or only pillars ? What was its date, and in whose 
reign was it struck ? Maybe it was from the mint at Phil- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


91 


adelphia — if so, had it the old eagle or the new ? In a 
word, could you swear to that quarter, Gar’ner, or to any 
quarter you ever spent in your life ? ” 

“Perhaps not, deacon. A fellow does n’t sit down to 
take likenesses, when he gets a little silver or gold.” 

“ Nor is it very probable that any one could say — ‘ that 
is my doubloon.’ ” 

“ Still there must be a lawful owner to each piece of 
that money, if any such money be there,” returned Roswell 
Gardiner, a little positively. “ Have you ever talked with 
Mary, deacon, on this subject ? ” 

“ I talk of such a matter with a woman ! Do you think 
I ’m mad, Gar’ner ? If I wanted to have the secret run 
through old Suffolk, as fire runs over the salt meadows in 
the spring, I might think of such a thing ; but not without. 
I have talked with no one but the master of the craft that I 
am about to send out in sehrch of this gold, as well as in 
search of the sealing-islands I have shown you. Had there 
been but one object in view, I might not have ventured so 
much ; but with two before my eyes, it would seem like 
flying in the face of Divine Providence to neglect so great 
an opportunity ! ” 

Roswell Gardiner saw that arguments would avail noth- 
ing against a cupidity so keenly aroused. He abstained, 
therefore, from urging any more of the objections that 
suggested themselves to his mind, but heard of that the 
deacon had to tell him, taking full notes of what he heard. 
It would seem that Daggett had been sufficiently clear in 
his directions for finding the hidden treasure, provided 
always that his confidant the pirate had been as clear with 
him, and had not been indulging in a mystification. The 
probability of the last had early suggested itself to one of 
Deacon Pratt’s cautious temperament ; but Daggett had 
succeeded in removing the impression by his forcible state- 
ments of his friend’s sincerity. There was as little doubt 
of the sincerity of the belief of the Martha’s Vineyard mar- 
iner, as there was of that of the deacon himself. 

The day that succeeded this conference, the Sea Lion 
hauled off from the wharf, and all communications with her 


92 


THE SEA LIONS. 


were now made only by means of boats. The sudden 
disappearance of Watson may have contributed to this 
change, men being more under control with a craft at her 
moorings than when fast to a wharf. Three days later 
the schooner lifted her anchor, and with a light air made 
sail. She passed through the narrow but deep channel 
which separates Shelter Island from Oyster Pond, quit- 
ting the waters of Peconic altogether. There was not an 
air of departure about her, notwithstanding. The deacon 
was not much concerned ; and some of Roswell Gardiner’s 
clothes were still at his washerwoman’s, circumstances that 
were fully explained, when the schooner was seen to anchor 
in Gardiner’s Bay, which is an outer roadstead to all the 
ports an I havens of that region. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


93 


CHAPTER VII. 

W alk in the light ! so shalt thou know 
That fellowship of love, 

His spirit only can bestow 
Who reigns in light above. 

Walk in the light ! and sin, abhorr’d, 

Shall ne’er defile again ; 

The blood of Jesus Christ, the Lord, 

Shall cleanse from every stain. 

Bernard Barton. 

About an hour after the Sea Lion, of Oyster Pond, had 
let go her anchor in Gardiner’s Bay, a coasting sloop ap- 
proached her, coming from the westward. There are two 
passages by which vessels enter or quit Long Island Sound, 
at its eastern termination. The main channel is between 
Plum and Fisher’s Islands, and, from the rapidity of its 
currents, is known by the name of the Race. The other 
passage is much less frequented, being out of the direct line 
of sailing for craft that keep mid-sound. It lies to the 
southward off the Race, between Plum Island and Oyster 
Pond Point, and is called by the Anglo-Saxon appellation 
of Plum Gut. The coaster just mentioned had come 
through this latter passage ; and it was the impression of 
those who saw her from the schooner, that she was bound 
up into Peconic, or the waters of Sag Harbor. Instead 
of luffing up into either of the channels that would have 
carried her into these places, however, she kept off, cross- 
ing Gardiner’s Bay, until she got within hail of the schooner. 
The wind being quite light, there was time for the follow- 
ing short dialogue to take place between the skipper of this 
coaster and Roswell Gardiner, before the sloop had passed 
beyond the reach of the voice. 

“ Is that the Sea Lion, of Oyster Pond ? ” demanded the 
skipper, boldly. 


94 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Ay, ay,” answered Roswell Gardiner, in the sententious 
manner of a seaman. 

“ Is there one Watson, of Martha’s Vineyard, shipped in 
that craft ? ” 

“ He was aboard here for a week, but left us suddenly. 
As he did not sign articles, I cannot say that he run.” 

“ He changed his mind, then,” returned the other, as one 
expresses a slight degree of surprise at hearing that which 
was new to him. “ Watson is apt to whiffle about, though 
a prime fellow, if you can once fasten to him, and get him 
into blue water. Does your schooner go out to-morrow, 
Captain Gar’ner ? ” 

“ Not till next day, I think,” said Roswell Gardiner, 
with the frankness of his nature, utterly free from the 
slightest suspicion that he was communicating with one in 
the interests of rivals. “ My mates have not yet joined me, 
and I am short of my complement by two good hands. Had 
that fellow Watson stuck to me, I would have given him a 
look at w'ater that no lead ever sounded.” 

“ Ay, ay ; he ’s a whiffler, but a good man on a sea-ele- 
phant. Then you think you ’ll sail day after to-morrow ? ” 

“ If my mates come over from the main. They wrote 
me yesterday that they had got the hands, and were then 
on the lookout for something to get across in. I ’ve come 
out here to be ready for them, and to pick ’em up that 
they need n’t go all the way up to the Harbor.” 

“ That ’s a good traverse, and will save a long pull. 
Perhaps they are in that boat.” 

At this allusion to a boat, Roswell Gardiner sprang into 
his main rigging, and saw, sure enough, that a boat was 
pulling directly towards the schooner, coming from the 
main, and distant only a short half mile. A glass was 
handed to him, and he was soon heard announcing cheer- 
fully to his men, that “Mr. Hazard and the second officer 
were in the boat, with two seamen,” and that he supposed 
they should now have their complement. All this was 
overheard by the skipper of the sloop, who caught each 
syllable with the most eager attention. 

“ You ’ll soon be traveling south, I ’m thinking, Captain 


THE SEA LIONS. 


95 


Gar’ner ? ” called out this worthy, again, in a sort of felici- 
tating way — “ Them ’s your chaps, and they ’ll set you up.” 

“ I hope so, with all my heart, for there is nothing more 
tiresome than waiting when one is all ready to trip. My 
owner is getting to be impatient too and wants to see some 
skins in return for his dollars.” 

“ Ay, ay, them ’s your chaps, and you ’ll be off the day 
a’ ter to-morrow, at the latest. Well, a good time to you, 
Captain Gar’ner, and a plenty of skinning. It ’s a long 
road to travel, especially when a craft has to go as far 
south as your’s is bound ! ” 

“ How do you know, friend, whither I am bound ? You 
ha\ e not asked me for my sealing ground, nor is it usual, 
in our business, to be hawking it up and down the coun- 
try.” 

“ All that is true enough, but I ’ve a notion, notwithstand- 
ing. Now, as you ’ll be off so soon, and as I shall not see 
you again, for some time at least, I will give you a piece 
of advice. If you fall in with a consort, don’t fall out with 
her, and make a distant v’y’ge a cruise for an enemy, but 
come to tarms, and work in company ; lay for lay ; and 
make fair weather of what can’t be helped.” 

The men on board the sloop laughed at this speech, 
while those on board the schooner wondered. To Roswell 
Gardiner and his people the allusions were an enigma, and 
the former muttered something about the stranger’s being 
a dunce, as he descended from the rigging, and gave some 
orders to prepare to receive the boat. 

“ The chap belongs to the Hole,” rejoined the master ' 
of the schooner, “ and all them Vineyard fellows fancy 
themselves better blue-jackets than the rest of mankind. 

I suppose it must be because their island lies farther out 
to sea than anything we have here inside of Montauk.” 

Thus ended the communications with the stranger. The 
sloop glided away before a light south wind, and, favored 
by an ebb tide, soon rounded the spit of sand that shelters 
the anchorage ; and, hauling up to the eastward, she went 
on her way towards Holmes’s Hole. The skipper was a 
relative of half of those who were interested in fitting out 


96 


THE SEA LIONS. 


the rifal Sea Lion, and had volunteered to obtain the very 
information he took with him, knowing how acceptable it 
would be to those at home. Sooth to say, a deep but wary 
excitement prevailed on the Vineyard, touching not only 
the sealing-islands, but also in respect to the buried treas- 
ure. The information actually possessed by the relations 
of the deceased mariner was neither very full nor very 
clear. It consisted principally of sayings of Daggett, uttered 
during his homeward-bound passage, and transmitted by 
the master of the brig to him of the sloop in the course 
of conferences that wore away a long summer’s afternoon, 
as the two vessels lay becalmed within a hundred fathoms 
of each other. These sayings, however, had been frequent 
and intelligible. All men like to deal in that which makes 
them of importance ; and the possession of his secrets had 
just the effect on Daggett’s mind that was necessary to 
render him boastful. Under such impulses his tongue had 
not been very guarded ; and facts leaked out which, when 
transmitted to his native island, through the medium of 
half a dozen tongues and as many fancies, amounted to 
statements sufficient to fire the imaginations of a people 
much duller than those of Martha’s Vineyard. Accustomed 
to converse and think of such expeditions, it is not sur- 
prising that a few of the most enterprising of those who 
first heard the reports should- unite and plan the adventure 
they now actually had in hand. When the intelligence of 
what was going on on Oyster Pond reached them, every- 
thing like hesitation or doubt disappeared; and from the 
moment of the nephew’s return in quest of his uncle’s 
assets, the equipment of the “ Hum’ses Hull ” craft had 
been pressed in a way that would have done credit to that 
of a government cruiser. Even Henry Eckford, so well 
known for having undertaken to cut the trees and put 
upon the waters of Ontario two double-bank frigates, if 
frigates they could be termed, each of which was to mount 
its hundred guns, in the short space of sixty days, scarce 
manifested greater energy in carrying out his contract, 
than did these rustic islanders in preparing their craft to 
compete with that which they were now certain was about 


THE SEA LIONS. 97 

to sail from the place where their kinsman had breathed 
his last. 

These keen and spirited islanders, however, did not 
work quite as much in the dark as our accounts, unex- 
plained, might give the reader reason to suppose. It will 
be remembered tfyat there was a till to the chest which had 
not been examined by the deacon. This till contained an 
old mutilated journal, not of the last, but of one or two 
of the earlier voyages of the deceased ; though it had de- 
tached entries that evidently referred to different and dis- 
tant periods of time. By dint of study, and by putting 
together sundry entries that at first sight might not be sup- 
posed to have any connection with each other, the present 
possessor of that chest had obtained what he deemed to be 
very sufficient clews to his uncle’s two great secrets. There 
were also in the chest several loose pieces of paper, on 
which there were rude attempts to make charts of all the 
islands and keys in question, giving their relative positions 
as it respected their immediate neighbors, but in no instance 
giving the latitudes and longitudes. In addition to these 
significant proofs that the reports brought through the two 
masters were not without a foundation, there was an unfin- 
ished letter, written by the deceased, and addressed as a 
sort of legacy, “ to any, or all of Martha’s Vineyard, of the 
name of Daggett.’ This address was sufficiently wide, in- 
cluding, probably, some hundreds of persons ; a clan in 
fact ; but it was also sufficiently significant. The individ- 
ual into whose hands it first fell, being of the name, read 
it first, as a matter of course, when he carefully folded it 
up, and placed it in a pocket-book which he was much in 
the habit of carrying in his own pocket. On what prin- 
ciple this letter, unfinished and without signature, with 
nothing indeed but its general and comprehensive address 
to point out its origin as well as its destination, was thus 
appropriated to the purposes of a single individual, we 
shall not stop to inquire. Such was the fact, however, and 
none connected with the equipment of the Sea Lion, of 
Holmes’s Hole, knew anything of the existence of ‘fiat 
document, its present possessor excepted. He looked it 
7 


98 


THE SEA LIONS. 


over occasionally, and deemed the information it conveyed 
of no trifling import, under all the circumstances of the 
case. 

Both the enterprises of which we have given an opening 
account were perfectly characteristic of the state of society 
in which they were brought into existence. Deacon Pratt, 
if he had any regular calling, was properly a husbandman, 
though the love of money had induced him to invest his 
cash in nearly every concern around him which promised 
remunerating returns. The principal owners of the Sea 
Lion, of Holmes’s Hole, were husbandmen also ; folk who 
literally tilled the earth, cradled their own oats and rye, 
and mowed their own meadows Notwithstanding, neither 
of these men, those of the Vineyard any more than he of 
Oyster Pond, had hesitated about investing of his means 
in a maritime expedition, just as if they were all regular 
ship-owners of the largest port in the Union. With such 
men, it is only necessary to exhibit an account with a fair 
prospect of large profits, and they are ever ready to enter 
into the adventure, heart, hand, and pocket. Last season, 
it may have been to look for whales on the coast of Japan ; 
the season before that, to search for islands frequented by 
the seals ; this season, possibly to carry a party out to hunt 
for camelopards, set nets for young lions, and beat up the 
quarters of the rhinoceros on the plains of Africa; while 
the next, they may be transporting ice from Long Pond to 
Calcutta and Kingston — not to say to London itself. Of 
such materials are those descendants of the Puritans com- 
posed ; a mixture of good and evil ; of the religion which 
clings to the past, in recollection rather than in feeling, 
mingled with a worldly-miudedness that amounts nearly to 
rapacity ; all cloaked and rendered decent by a conven- 
tional respect for duties, and respectable and useful, by 
frugality, enterprise, and untiring activity. 

Roswell Gardiner had not mistaken the persons of those 
in the boat. They proved to be Phil Hazard, his first 
olficer ; Tim Green, the second mate ; and the two sealers 
whom it had cost so much time and ingenuity to obtain. 
Although neither of the mates even suspected the truth, 


THE SEA LIONS. 


99 


no sooner had they engaged the right sort of man than he 
was tampered with by the agents of the Martha’s Vineyard 
concern, and spirited away by means of' more tempting 
proposals, before he had got quite so far as to sign the 
articles. One of the motives for sending Watson across to 
Oyster Pond had been to induce Captain Gardiner to be- 
lieve he had engaged so skillful a hand, which would effect- 
ually prevent his attempting to procure another, until, at 
the last moment, he might find himself unable to put to 
sea for the want of a complement. A whaling era sealing 
voyage requires that the vessel should take out with her the 
particular hands necessary to her specific object, though, 
of late years, the seamen have got so much in the habit 
of “ running,” especially in the Pacific, that it is only the 
craft that strictly belong to what may be termed the whaling 
communities, that bring back with them the people they 
carry out, and not always them. 

But here had Roswell Gardiner his complement full, 
and nearly everything ready for sea. He had only to go 
up to the Harbor and obtain his clearance, have a short 
interview with his owner, a longer with Mary, and be off 
for the antarctic circle, if indeed the ice would allow him 
to get as far south. There were now sixteen souls on 
board the Sea Lion, a very sufficient number for the voy- 
age on which she was about to sail. The disposition or 
rating of the crew was as follows, viz: — 


1. Roswell Gardiner, master. 

2. Philip Hazard, chief mate. 

3. Timothy Green, second do. 

4. David Weeks, carpenter. 

5. Nathan Thompson, seaman 

6. Sylvester Havens, do. 

7. Marcus Todd, do. 

8 . Hiram Flint, do. 


9. Joshua Short, seaman. 

10. Stephen Stimson, do. 

11. Bartlett Davidson, do. 

12 Peter Mount, landsman. 

13. Arcularius Mott, do. 

14. Robert Smith, do. 

15. Cato Livingston, cook. 

16. Primus Floyd, boy. 


This was considered a good crew, on the whole. Every 
man was a native American, and most of them belonged to 
old Suffolk. Thompson, and Flint, and Short, and Stim- 
son, four capital fellows in their way, came from the main ; 
the last, it was said, from as far east as Kennebunk. No 
matter ; they were all reasonably young, hale, active fel- 


100 


THE SEA LIONS. 


lows, with a promise of excellent service about every man 
of tliem. Livingston and Floyd were colored persons, 
wlio bore the names of the two respectable families in 
which they or their progenitors had formerly been slaves. 
Weeks was accustomed to the sea, and might have been 
rated indifferently as a carpenter or as a mariner. Mount 
and Mott, though shipped as landsmen, were a good deal 
accustomed to the water also, having passed each two sea- 
sons in coasters, though neither had ever yet been really 
outside, or seen blue water. 

It would not have been easy to give to the Sea Lion 
a more efficient crew ; yet there was scarce a real sea- 
man belonging to her — a man who could have been made 
a captain of the forecastle on board a frigate or a ship 
of the line. Even Gardiner, the best man in his little 
craft in nearly every respect, was deficient in many attain- 
ments that mark the thorough sea-dog. He would have 
been remarkable anywhere for personal activity, for' cour- 
age, readiness, hardihood, and all those qualities which 
render a man useful in the business to which he properly 
belonged; but he could hardly be termed a skillful leads- 
man, knew little of the finesse of his calling, and was 
wanting in that in-and-in breeding which converts habit 
into an instinct, and causes the thorough seaman to do the 
right thing, blow high or blow low, in the right way, and 
at the right moment. In all these respects, however, he 
was much the best man on board ; and he was so superior 
to the rest as fully to command all their respect. Stim- 
son was probably the next best seaman, after the master. 

The day succeeding that on which the Sea Lion re- 
ceived the remainder of her people, Roswell Gardiner went 
up to the Harbor, where he met Deacon Pratt, by ap- 
pointment. The object was to clear the schooner out, 
which could be done only at that place. Mary accompa- 
nied her uncle, to transact some of her own little domestic 
business ; and it was then arranged between the parties, 
that the deacon should make his last visit to his vessel in 
the return-boat of her master, while Roswell Gardiner 
should take Mary back to Oyster Pond, in the whale-boat 


THE SEA LIONS. 


101 


that had brought her and her uncle over. As Baiting Joe, 
as usual, had acted as ferryman, it was necessary to get 
rid of him, the young sailor desiring to be alone with Mary. 
This was easily enough effected, by a present of a quarter 
of a dollar. The boat having two lugg sails, and the wind 
being light and steady, at southwest, there was nothing to 
conflict with Roswell Gardiner’s wishes. 

The young sailor left the wharf at Sag Harbor about 
ten minutes after the deacon had preceded him, on his way 
to the schooner. As the wind was so light and so fair, he 
soon had his sheets in, and the boat gliding along at an 
easy rate, which permitted him to bestow nearly all his at- 
tention on his charming companion. Roswell Gard'ner 
had sought this occasion, that he might once more open 
his heart to Mary, and urge his suit for the last time, pre- 
viously to so long an absence. This he did in a manly, 
frank way, that was far from being unpleasant to his gentle 
listener, whose inclinations, for a few minutes, blinded her 
to the resolutions already made on principle. So urgent 
was her suitor, indeed, that she should solemnly plight her 
faith to him, ere he sailed, that a soft illusion came over 
the mind of one as affectionate as Mary, and she was half- 
inclined to believe her previous determination was unjusti- 
fiable and obdurate. But the head of one of her high prin- 
ciples, and clear views of duty, could not long be deceived 
by her heart, and she regained the self-command which 
had hitherto sustained her in all her former trials, in con- 
nection with this subject. 

“ Perhaps it would have been better, Roswell,” she said, 
“ had I taken leave of you at the Harbor, and not incurred 
the risk of the pain that I foresee I shall both give and 
bear, in our present discourse. I have concealed nothing 
from you ; possibly I have been more sincere than pru- 
dence would sanction. You know the only obstacle there 
is to our union ; but that appears to increase k strength, 
the more I ask you to reflect on it — to try to remove 
it.” 

“ What would you have me do, Mary ! Surely, not to 
play the hypocrite, and profess to believe that which I 


102 


THE SEA LIONS. 


certainly do not, and which, after all my inquiries, I can - 
not believe.” 

“ I am sorry it is so, on every account,” returned Mary, 
in a low and saddened tone. “ Sorry, that one of so frank, 
ingenuous a mind, should find it impossible to accept the 
creed of his fathers, and sorry that it must leave so impass- 
able a chasm between us, forever.” 

u No, Mary ; that can never be! Nothing but death 
can separate us for so long a time ! While we meet, we 
shall at least be friends ; and friends love to meet and to 
see each other often.” 

“ It may seem unkind, at a moment like this, Roswell, 
but it is in truth the very reverse, if I say we ought not to 
meet each other here, if we are bent on following our own 
separate ways towards a future world. My God is not 
your God ; and what can there be of peace in a family, 
when its two heads worship different deities ? I am afraid 
that you do not think sufficiently of the nature of these 
things.” 

“ I did not believe you to be so illiberal, Mary ! Had 
the deacon said as much, I might not have been surprised ; 
but, for one like you to tell me that my God is not your 
God, is narrow, indeed ! ” 

“ Is it not so, Roswell ? And, if so, why should we at- 
tempt to gloss over the truth by deceptive words ? I am a 
believer in the Redeemer, as the son of God ; as one of 
the Holy Trinity ; while you believe in him only as a man 
— a righteous and just, a sinless man, if you will, but as 
a raan only. Now, is not the difference in these creeds 
immense ? Is it not, in truth, just the difference between 
God and man ? I worship my Redeemer ; regard him 
as the equal of the Father — as a part of that Divine 
Being ; while you look on him as merely a man without 
sin — as a man such as Adam probably was before the 
fall.” 

“ Do we know enough of these matters, Mary, to jus- 
tify us in allowing them to interfere with our happi- 
ness ? ” 

“We are told that they are all -essential to our hap- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


103 


piness — not in the sense you may mean, Roswell, but in 
one of far higher impo*rt — and we cannot neglect them, 
without paying the penalty.” 

“ I think you carry these notions too far, dearest Mary, 
and that it is possible for man and wife most heartily to 
love each other, and to be happy in each other, without 
their thinking exactly alike on religion. How many good 
and pious women do you see, who are contented and pros- 
perious as wives and mothers, and who are members of 
meeting, but whose husbands make no profession of any 
sort ! ” 

“ That may be true, or not. I lay no claim to a right 
to judge of any other’s duties, or manner of viewing what 
they ought to do. Thousands of girls marry without feel- 
ing the very obligations that they profess to reverence ; 
and when, in after life, deeper convictions come, they can- 
not cast aside the connections they have previously formed, 
if they would ; and probably would not, if they could. 
That is a different thing from a young woman, who has a 
ieep sense of what she owes to her Redeemer, becoming 
feliberately, and with a full sense of what she is doing, the 
wife of one who regards her God as merely a man — I 
care not how you qualify this opinion, by saying a pure 
and sinless man ; it will be man, still. The difference be- 
tween God and man is too immense, to be frittered away 
by any such qualifications as that.” 

“ But if I find it impossible to believe all you believe, 
Mary, surely you would not punish me for having the sin- 
cerity to tell you truth, and the whole truth.” 

“ No, indeed, Roswell,” answered the honest girl, gently, 
not to say tenderly. “ Nothing has given me a better opin- 
ion of your principles, Roswell — a higher notion of what 
your upright and frank character really is, than the manly 
way in which you have admitted that justice of my suspi- 
cions of your want of faith — of faith, as I consider faith can 
alone exist. This fair dealing has make me honor you, 
and esteem you, in addition to the more girlish attachment 
that I do not wish to conceal from you, at least, I have so 
long felt.” 


104 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Blessed Mary ! ” exclaimed Roswell Gardiner, almost 
ready to fall down on his knees and worship the pretty en- 
thusiast, who sat at his side, with a countenance in which 
intense interest in his welfare was beaming from two of the 
softest and sweetest blue eyes that maiden ever bent on a 
youth in modest tenderness, whatever disposition he might 
be in to accept her God as his God. “ How can one so kind 
in all other respects, prove so cruel in this one particular ! ” 
“Because that one particular, as you term it, Roswell, 
is all in all to her,” answered the girl, with a face that was 
now flushed with feeling. “ I must answer you as Joshua 
told the Israelites of old — ‘ Choose you, this day, whom 
you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served, 
that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the 
Amorites, in whose land ye dwell : but as for me and my 
house , we will serve the Lord. ’ ” 

“ Do you class me with the idolaters and pagans of Pal- 
estine ? ” demanded Gardiner, reproachfully. 

“ You have said it, Roswell. It is not I, but yourself, 
who have thus classed you. You worship your reason, in- 
stead of the one true and living God. This is idolatry of 
the worst character, since the idol is never seen by the 
devotee, and he does not know of its existence.” 

“ You consider it then idolatry for one to use those gifts 
which he has received from his Maker, and to treat the 
most important of all subjects, as a rational being, instead 
of receiving creed blindly, and without thought ? ” 

“ If what you call thought could better the matter ; if it 
were sufficient to comprehend and master this subject, there 
m : ght be force in what you say. But what is this boasted 
reason, after all ? It is not sufficient to explain a single 
mystery of the creation, though there are thousands. I 
know there are, nay there must be a variety of opinions 
among those who look to their reasons, instead of accepting 
the doctrine of revelation, for the character of Christ ; but 
I believe all, who are not open infidels, admit that the 
atonement of his death was sufficient for the salvation of 
men : now can you explain this part of the theory of our 
religion any more than you can explain the divine nature 


THE SEA LIONS. 


105 


of the Redeemer r Can you reason any more wisely touch- 
ing the fall, than touching the redemption itself ? I know 
I am unfit to treat of matters of this profound nature,” con- 
tinued Mary, modestly, though with great earnestness and 
beauty of manner ; <k but, to me, it seems very plain that 
the instant circumstances lead us beyond the limits of our 
means of comprehension, we are to believe in, and not to 
reason on, revelation. The whole history of Christianity 
teaches this. Its first ministers were uneducated men : 
men who were totally ignorant until enlightened by their 
faith ; and all the lessons it teaches are to raise faith, and 
faith in the Redeemer, high above all other attainments, as 
the one great acquisition that includes and colors every 
other. When such is the fact, the heart does not make a 
stumbling-block of everything that the head cannot under- 
stand.” 

“ I do not know how it is,” answered Roswell Gardiner, 
influenced, though unconvinced ; “ but when I talk with 
you on this subject, Mary, I cannot do justice to my opin- 
ions, or to the manner in which I reason on them with 
my male friends and acquaintance. I confess it does ap- 
pear to me illogical, unreasonable — I scarce know how to 
designate what I mean — but improbable, that God should 
suffer himself, or his Son, to be crucified by beings that 
He himself created, or that He should feel a necessity for 
any such course, in order to redeem beings He had himself 
brought into existence.” 

“ If there be any argument in the last, Roswell, it is an 
argument as much against the crucifixion of a man, as 
against the crucifixion of one of the Trinity itself. I un- 
derstand you to believe that such a being as Jesus of Naz- 
areth did exist ; that He was crucified for our redemption ; 
and that the atonement was accepted, and acceptable before 
God the Father. Now, is it not just as difficult to un- 
derstand how, or why this should be, as to understand the 
common creed of Christians ? ” 

“ Surely, there is a vast difference between the cruci- 
fixion of a subordinate being, and the crucifixion of one 
who made a part of the Godhead itself, Mary ! I can im 


106 


THE SEA LIONS. 


agine the first, though I may not pretend to understand its 
reasons, or why it was necessary it should be so ; but I 
am certain you will not mistake my motive when I say I 
cannot imagine the other.” 

“ Make no apologies to me, Roswell ; look rather to that 
Dread Being whose teachings, through chosen ministers, 
you disregard. As for what you say, I can fully feel its 
t T uth. I do not pretend to understand why such a sacrifice 
should be necessary, but I believe it, feel it ; and believing 
and feeling it, I cannot but adore aud worship the Son, 
who quitted heaven to come on earth, and suffered, that we 
might possess eternal life. It is all mystery to me, as is 
the creation itself, our existence, God himself, and all else 
that my mind is too limited to comprehend. But, Roswell, 
if I believe a part of the teachings of the Christian church, 
I mu£t believe all. The apostles, who were called by 
Christ in person, who lived in his very presence, who knew 
nothing except as the Holy Spirit prompted, worshiped 
Him as the Son of God, as one ‘ who thought it not robbery 
to be equal with God and shall I, ignorant and unin- 
spired, pretend to set up my feeble means of reasoning, in 
opposition to their written instructions ! ” 

“ Yet must each of us stand or fall by the means he pos- 
sesses, and the use he makes of them.” 

“ That is quite true, Roswell ; and ask yourself the use 
to which you put your own faculties. I do not deny that 
we are to exercise our reason, but it is within the bounds 
set for its exercise. We may examine the evidence of 
Christianity, and determine for ourselves how far it is sup- 
ported by reasonable and sufficient proofs ; beyond this we 
cannot be expected to go, else might we be required to 
comprehend the mystery of our own existence, which just 
as much exceeds our understanding as any other. We are 
told that man was created in the image of his Creator, 
which means that there is an immortal and spiritual part 
of him that is entirely different from the material creature. 
One perishes, temporarily at least — a limb can be severed 
from the body and perish, even while the body survives ; 
but it is not so with that which has been created in the 


THE SEA LIONS. 


107 


image of the Deity. That is imperishable, immortal, spir- 
itual, though doomed to dwell a while in a tenement of 
clay. Now, why is it more difficult to believe that pure 
divinity may have entered into the person of one man, than 
to believe , nay to feel , that the image of God has entered 
into the persons of so many myriads of men? You not 
only overlook all this, Roswell, but you commit the, to me 
inexplicable, mistake of believing a part of a mystery, while 
you hesitate about believing all. Were you to deny the 
merits of the atonement altogether, your position would be 
much stronger than it is in believing what you do. But, 
Roswell, we will not embitter the moment of separation by 
talking more on this subject, now. I have other things to 
say to you, and but little time to say them in. The prom- 
ise you have asked of me to remain single until your return, 
I most freely make. It costs me nothing to give you this 
pledge, since there is scarce a possibility of my ever mar- 
rying another.” 

Mary repeated these words, or rather this idea in other 
words, to Roswell Gardiner’s great delight ; and again and 
again he declared that he could now penetrate the icy seas 
with a light heart, confident he should find her, on his re- 
turn, disengaged, and, as he hoped, as much disposed to 
regard him with interest as she then was. Nevertheless, 
Gardiner did not deceive himself as to Mary’s intentions. 
He knew her and her principles too well, to fancy that her 
resolution would be very likely to falter. Notwithsanding 
their long and intimate knowledge of each other, at no time 
had she ever betrayed a weakness that promised to un- 
dermine her high sense of duty ; and as time increased her 
means of judging of what those duties were, her submission 
to them seemed to be stronger and stronger. Had there 
been anything stern or repulsive in Mary’s manner of mani- 
festing the feeling that was uppermost in her mind, one of 
Roswell Gardiner’s temperament would have been very apt 
to shake off her influence ; but, so far from this being 
the case, she ever met him and parted from him with a 
gentle and ingenuous interest in his welfare, and occasion- 
ally with much womanly tenderness. He knew that she 


108 


THE SEA LIONS. 


prayed for him daily, as fervently as she prayed for her- 
self ; and even this, he hoped, would serve to keep alive 
her interest in him, during his absence. In this respect 
our young sailor showed no bad comprehension of human 
nature, nothing being more likely to maintain an influence 
of this sort, than the conviction that on ourselves depends 
the happiness or interests of the person beloved. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


109 


CHAPTER VIII. 

And I have loved thee, Ocean ! and my joy 
Of youthful sports was on thy breast to be 
Borne, like thy bubbles, onward ; from a boy 
I wanton’d with thy breakers — they to me 
Were a delight; and if the freshening sea 
Made them a terror — ’t was a pleasing fear ; 

For I was, as it were, a child of thee, 

And trusted to thy billows, far and near, 

And laid my hand upon thy mane — as I do here. 

Byro». 

It was past the turn of the day when Roswell Gardiner 
reached his vessel, after having carefully and with manly 
interest in all that belonged to her, seen Mary to her home, 
and taken his final leave of her. Of that parting we shall 
say but little. It was touching and warm-hearted, and it 
was rendered a little solemn by Mary Pratt’s putting into 
her lover’s hand a pocket Bible, with an earnest request 
that he would not forget to consult its pages. She added, 
at the same time, that she had carefully marked those pas- 
sages which she wished him most to study and reflect on. 
The book was accepted in the spirit in which it was offered, 
and carefully placed in a little case that contained about a 
hundred volumes of different works. 

As the hour approached for lifting the anchor, the ner- 
vousness of the deacon became very apparent to the com- 
mander of his schooner. At each instant the former was 
at the latter’s elbow, making some querulous suggestion, or 
asking a question that betrayed the agitated and unsettled 
state of his mind. It really seemed as if the old man, at 
the last moment, had not the heart to part with his prop- 
erty, or to trust it out of his sight. All this annoyed Ros- 
well Gardiner, disposed as he was, at that instant, to 
regaid every person and thing that in any manner per- 
tained to Mary Pratt, with indulgence and favor. 


110 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ You will be particular about them islands, Captain 
Gar’ner, and not get the schooner ashore,” said the deacon, 
for the tenth time at least. “ They tell me the tide runs 
like a horse in the high latitudes, and that seamen are 
often stranded by them, before they know where they are.” 

“ Ay, ay, sir ; I ’ll try and bear it in mind,” answered 
Gardiner, vexed at being importuned so often to recollect 
that which there was so little likelihood of his forgetting ; 
“ I am an old cruiser in those seas, deacon, and know all 
about the tides. Well, Mr. Hazard, what is the news of 
the anchor ? ” 

“We are short, sir, and only wait for orders to go on, 
and get clear of the ground.” 

“ Trip, at once, sir ; and so farewell to America — or 
to this end of it, at least.” 

“ Then the keys, they tell me, are dangerous navigation, 
Gar’ner, and a body needs have all his eyes about him.” 

“ All places have their dangers to your sleepy navigator, 
deacon ; but the man who keeps his eyes open has little 
to fear. Had you given us a chronometer, there would 
not have been one half the risk there will be without one.” 

This had been a bone of contention between the master 
of the Sea Lion and his owner. Chronometers were not 
by any means in as general use at the period of our tale 
as they are to-day ; and the deacon abhorred the expense 
to which such an article would have put him. Could he 
have got one at a fourth of the customary price he might 
have been tempted ; but it formed no part of his principles 
of saving to anticipate and prevent waste by liberality. 

No sooner was the schooner released from the ground 
than her sails were filled, and she went by the low spit of 
sand already mentioned, with the light southwest breeze 
still blowing in her favor, and an ebb tide. Everything 
appeared propitious, and no vessel probably ever left home 
under better omens. The deacon remained on board until 
Baiting Joe, who was to act as his boatman, reminded him 
of the distance, and the probability that the breeze would 
go down entirely with the sun. As it was, they had to 
contend with wind and tide, and it would require all his 


TEE SEA LIONS. 


Ill 


own knowledge of the eddies to get the whale-boat up to 
Oyster Pond in anything like reasonable time. Thus ad- 
monished, the owner tore himself away from his beloved 
craft, giving “ young Gar’ner ” as many “ last words ” as 
if he were about to be executed. Roswell had a last word 
on his part, however, in the shape of a message to Mary. 

“ Tell Mary, deacon,” said the young sailor, in an aside, 
“ that I rely on her promise, and that I shall think of her, 
whether it be under the burning sun of the line, or among 
the ice of the antarctic.” 

“ Yes, yes ; that ’s as it should be,” answered the deacon, 
heartily. “ I like your perseverance, Gar’ner, and hope 
the gal will come round yet, and I shall have you for a 
nephew. There ’s nothing that takes the women’s minds 
like money. Fill up the schooner with skins and ile, and 
bring back that treasure, and you make as sure of Mary 
for a wife as if the parson had said the benediction over 
you.” 

Such was Deacon Pratt’s notion of his niece, as well as 
of the female sex. For months he regarded this speech 
as a coup de maitre , while Roswell Gardiner forgot it in 
half an hour ; so much better than the uncle did the lover 
comprehend the character of the niece. 

The Sea Lion, of Oyster Pond, had now cast off the 
last ligament which connected her with the land. She had 
no pilot, none being necessary, or usual, in those waters ; 
all that a vessel had to do being to give Long Island a 
sufficient berth in rounding its eastern extremity. The 
boat was soon shut in by Gardiner’s Island, and thence- 
forth nothing remained but the ties of feeling to connect 
those bold adventurers with their native country. It is 
true that Connecticut, and subsequently Rhode Island, was 
yet visible on one hand, and a small portion of New York 
on the other; but as darkness came to close the scene, 
even that means of communication was soon virtually cut 
off. The light on Montauk, for hours, was the sole beacon 
for these bold mariners, who rounded it about midnight, 
fairly meeting the long, rolling swell of the broad Atlantic. 
Then the craft might be said to be at sea for the first time. 


112 


THE SEA LIONS. 


The Sea Lion was found to perform well. She had 
been constructed with an eye to comfort, as w,ell as to sail- 
ing, and possessed that just proportion in her hull which 
carried her over the surface of the waves like a duck. 
This quality is of more importance to a small than to a 
large vessel, for the want of momentum renders what is 
termed “ burying,” a very deadening process to a light 
craft. In this very important particular Roswell was soon 
satisfied that the shipwright had done his duty. 

As the wind still stood at southwest, the schooner was 
brought upon an easy bowline, as soon as she had Montauk 
light dead to windward. This new course carried her out 
to sea, steering south-southeast, a little easterly, under 
everything that would draw. The weather appearing set- 
tled, and there being no signs of a change, Gardiner now 
went below and turned in, leaving the care of the vessel to 
the proper officer of the watch, with an order to call him 
at sunrise. Fatigue soon asserted its power, and the young 
man was shortly in as profound a sleep as if he had not 
just left a mistress whom he almost worshiped for an ab- 
sence of two years, and to go on a voyage that probably 
would expose him to more risks and suffering than any 
other enterprise then attempted by sea-faring men. Our 
young sailor thought not of the last at all, but he fell 
asleep dreaming of Mary. 

The master of the Sea Lion, of Oyster Pond, was called 
precisely at the hour he had named. Five minutes sufficed 
to bring him on deck, where he found everything as he 
had left it, with the exception of the schooner itself. In 
the six hours he had been below, his vessel had moved her 
position o it to sea nearly forty miles. No. land was now 
to be seen, the American coast being very tame and unpict- 
uresque to the eye, as the purest patriot, if he happen to 
know anything of other parts of the world, must be con- 
strained to admit. A low, monotonous coast, that is scarcely 
visible at a distance of five leagues, is certainly not to be 
named in the same breath with those glorious shores of the 
Mediterranean, for instance, where nature would seem to 
have exhausted herself in uniting the magnificent with the 


THE SEA LIONS. 


113 


bewitching. On this continent, or on our own portion of 
it at least, we must be content with the useful, and lay no 
great claims to the beautiful ; the rivers and bays giving us 
some compensation in their admirable commercial facilities, 
for the sameness, not to say lameness, of the views. We 
mention these things in passing, as a people that does not 
understand its relative position in the scale of nations is a 
little apt to fall into errors that do not contribute to its 
character or respectability ; more especially when they ex- 
hibit a self-love founded altogether on ignorance, and which 
has been liberally fed by flattery. 

The first thing a seaman does on coming on deck, after 
a short absence, is to look to windward, in order to see 
how the wind stands, and what are the prospects of the 
weather. Then he turns his eyes aloft to ascertain what 
canvas is spread, and how it draws. Occasionally, the 
order of these observations is changed, the first look being 
sometimes bestowed on the sails, and the second on the 
clouds. Roswell Gardiner, however, cast his first glance 
this morning towards the southward and westward, and 
perceived that the breeze promised to be steady. On look- 
ing aloft, he was well satisfied with the manner in which 
everything drew; then he turned to the second mate, who 
had the watch, whom he addressed cheerfully, and with a 
courtesy that is not always observed among sailors. 

“ A fine morning, sir,” said Roswell Gardiner, “ and a 
good-by to America. We’ve a long road to travel, Mr. 
Green, but we ’ve a fast boat to do it in. Here is an offing 
ready-made to our hands. Nothing in sight to the west- 
ward ; not so much as a coaster, even ! It ’s too early for 
the outward-bound craft of the last ebb, and too late for 
those that sailed the tide before. I never saw this bight 
of the coast clearer of canvas.” 

“ Ay, ay, sir ; it does seem empty, like. Here ’s a chap, 
however, to leeward, who appears inclined to try his rate 
of sailing with us. Here he is, sir, a very little abaft the 
beam ; and, as near as I can make him out, he ’s a fore- 
tawsail schooner, of about our own dimensions ; if you ’ll 


114 


THE SEA LIONS. 


just look at .lim through this glass, Captain Gar’ner, you ’ll 
see he has not only our rig, but our canvas set.” 

“ You are right enough, Mr. Green,” returned Roswell, 
after getting his look. “ He is a schooner of about our 
tonnage, and under precisely our canvas. How long has 
the fellow bore as he does now ? ” 

“ He came out from under Blok Island a few hours 
since, and we made him by moonlight. The question with 
me is, where did that chap come from ? A Stunnin’ton 
man would have naturally passed to windward of Blok 
Island ; and a Newport or Providence fellow would not 
have fetched so far to windward without making a stretch 
or two on purpose. That schooner has bothered me ever 
since it was daylight ; for I can’t place him where he is 
by any traverse my poor l’arnin’ can work ! ” 

“ She does seem to be out of her way. Possibly it is a 
schooner beating up for the Hook, and finding herself too 
close in, she is standing to the southward to get an offing 
again.” 

“ Not she, sir. She came out from behind Blok, and a 
craft of her size that wanted to go to the westward, and 
which found itself so close in, would have taken the first 
of the flood and gone through the Race like a shot. No, 
no, Captain Gar’ner ; this fellow is bound south as well as 
ourselves, and it is quite onaccountable how he should be 
just where he is — so far to windward, or so far to lee- 
ward, as a body might say. A south-southeast course, 
from any place behind Point Judith, would have taken him 
off near No Man’s Land, and here he is almost in a line 
with Blok Island ! ” 

“ Perhaps he is out of New London, or some of the ports 
on the main, and being bound to the West Indies he has 
been a little careless about weathering the island. It ’s no 
great matter, after all.” 

“ It is some such matter, Captain Gar’ner, as walkin’ 
round a meetin’-’us’ when your ar’n’d is in at the door in 
front. But there was no such craft in at Stunnin’tun or 
New London, as I know from havin’ been at both places 
within the last eight-and-forty hours.” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


115 


“ You begin to make me as curious about this fellow as 
you seem to be yourself, sir. And now I think the matter 
all over, it is somewhat extr’or’nary he should be just where 
he is. It is, however, a very easy thing to get a nearer 
look at him, and it’s no great matter to us, intending as 
we do to make the islands off the Gape de Verde, if we do 
lose a little of our weatherly position — keep the schooner 
away a point, and get a small pull on your weather braces 
— give her a little sheet too, fore and aft, sir. So, that 
will do — keep her steady at that — southeast and by 
south. In two hours we shall just about speak this out-of- 
the-way joker.” 

As every command was obeyed, the Sea Lion was soon 
running off free, her bowlines hanging loose, and all her 
canvas a rap full. The change in her line of sailing 
brought the sail to leeward, a little forward of her beam ; 
but the movement of the vessel that made the freest wind 
was consequently the most rapid. In the course of half 
an hour the stranger was again a little abaft the beam, and 
he was materially nearer than when first seen. No change 
was made in the route of the stranger, who now seemed 
disposed to stand out to sea, with the wind as it was, on 
an easy bowline, without paying any attention to the sail 
in sight. 

It was noon ere the two schooners came within hail of 
each other. Of course, as they drew nearer and nearer, 
it was possible for those on board of each to note the ap- 
pearance, equipments, and other peculiarities of his neigh- 
bor. In size, there was no apparent difference between 
the vessels, and there was a somewhat remarkable resem- 
blance in the details. 

“ That fellow is no West India drogher,” said Roswell 
Gardiner, when less than a mile from the stranger. “ He 
carries a boat on deck, as we do, and has one on each 
quarter, too. Can it be possible that he is bound after 
seals, as well as we are ourselves ! ” 

“ I believe you ’re right, sir,” answered Hazard, the 
chief mate, who was now on deck. “ There ’s a sealing 
look about the gentleman, if I know my own complexion. 


116 


THE SEA LIONS. 


It ’s odd enough, Captain . Gar’ner, that two of us should 
come together, out here in the offing, and both of us bound 
to the other end of the ’arth ! ” 

“There is nothing so very remarkable in that , Mr. Haz- 
ard, when we remember that the start must be properly 
timed for those who wish to be off Cape Horn in the sum- 
mer season. We shall neither of us get there much before 
December, and I suppose the master of yon schooner 
knows that as well as I do myself. The position of this 
craft puzzles me far more than anything else about her. 
From what port can a vessel come, that she should be just 
here, with the wind at southwest ? ” 

“ Ay, sir,” put in Green, who was moving about the 
decks, coiling ropes and clearing things away, “ that ’s 
what I tell the chief mate. Where can a craft come from, 
to be just here, with this wind, if she don’t come from 
Stunnin’tun. Even from Stunnin’tun she ’d be out of her 
way ; but no such vessel has been in that port any time 
these six weeks. Here, you Stimson, come this way a bit. 
Did n’t you tell me something of having seen a schooner at 
New Bedford, that was about our build and burden, and 
that you understood had been bought for a sealer ? ” 

“ Ay, ay, sir,” answered Stimson, as bluff an old sea- 
dog as ever flattened in a jib-sheet, “ and that’s the craft, 
as I’m a thinkin’, Mr. Green. She had an animal for a 
figure-head, and that craft has an animal, as well as I can 
judge, at this distance.” 

“ You are right enough there, Stephen,” cried Roswell 
Gardiner, “ and that animal is a seal. It ’s the twin- 
brother of the sea-lion we carry under our own bowsprit. 
There ’s some proof in that, tastes agree sometimes, even 
if they do differ generally. What became of the schooner 
you saw ? ” 

“ I heard, sir, that she was bought up by some Vineyard 
men, and was taken across to Hum’ses Hull. They some- 
times fit out a craft there, as well as on the main. I should 
have crossed myself to see what they was at, but I fell in 
with Mr. Green, and shipped aboard here.” 

“ An adventure by which, I hope, you will not be a 


THE SEA LIONS. 


117 


loser, my hearty,” put in the captain. “ And you think 
that is the craft which was built at New Bedford, and fitted 
out on the Vineyard ? ” 

“ Sartain of it, sir ; for I know the figure-head, and all 
about her build.” 

“ Hand me the trumpet, Mr. Green ; we shall soon be 
near enough for a hail, and it will be easy to learn the 
truth.” 

Roswell Gardiner waited a few minutes for the two 
schooners to close, and was in the very act of applying the 
trumpet to his mouth, when the usual salutation was sent 
across the water from the stranger. During the conversa- 
tion that now took place, the vessels gradually drew nearer 
to each other, until both parties laid aside their trumpets, 
and carried on the discourse with the unaided voice, 

“ Schooner, ahoy ! ” was the greeting of the stranger, and 
a simple “ Hilloa ! ” the answer. 

“ What schooner is that, pray ? ” 

“ The Sea Lion, of Oyster Pond, Long Island ; bound 
to the southward, after seal, as I suppose you know by our 
outfit.” 

“ When did you leave Oyster Pond — and how did you 
leave your owner, the good Deacon Pratt ? ” 

“We sailed yesterday afternoon, on the first of the ebb, 
and the deacon left us as we weighed anchor. He was 
well, and full of hope for our luck. What schooner is that, 
pray ? ” 

“ The Sea Lion, of Hum’ses Hull ; bound to the south- 
ward, after seals, as you probably know by our outfit. 
Who commands that schooner ? ” 

“ Captain Roswell Gar’ner — who commands aboard 
you, pray ? ” 

“ Captain Jason Daggett,” showing himself more plainly, 
py moving out of the line of the main-rigging. “I had 
the pleasure of seeing you when I was on the P’int, look- 
ing after my uncle’s dunnage, you may remember, Captain 
Gar’ner. ’T was but the other day, and you are not likely 
to have forgotten my visit.” 

“ Not at all, not at all, Captain Daggett ; though I had 


118 


THE SEA LIONS. 


no idea, then , that you intended to make a voyage to the 
southward so soon. When did you leave the Hole, 
sir ? ” 

“ Day before yesterday, a’ternoon. We came out of 
the Hull about five o’clock.” 

“ How had you the wind, sir ? ” 

“ Sou’west, and sou’west and by south. There has 
been but little change in that, these three days.” 

Roswell Gardiner muttered something to himself; but 
he did not deem it prudent to utter the thoughts, that were 
just then passing through his mind, aloud. 

“ Ay, ay,” he answered, after a moment’s pause, “ the 
wind has stood there the whole week ; but I think we shall 
shortly get a change. There is an easterly feeling in the 
air.” 

“ Waal, let it come. With this offing, we could clear 
Ilatteras with anything that wasn’t worse than a south- 
easter. There’s a southerly set, in here, down the coast, 
for two or three hundred miles.” 

“ A heavy southeaster would jam us in, here, between 
the shoals, in a way I shouldn’t greatly relish, sir. I like 
always to get to the eastward of the Stream, as soon as I 
can in running off the land.” 

“ Very true, Captain Gar’nec — very true, sir. It is 
best to get outside the Stream, if a body can. Once there, 
I call a craft at sea. Eight-and-forty hours more of this 
wind would just about carry us there. Waal, sir, as we ’re 
bound on the same sort of v’y’age, I’m happy to have 
fallen in with you ; and I see no reason why we should not 
be neighborly, and “ gam ” it a little, when we ’ve nothing 
better to do. I like that schooner of yours so well, that 
I ’ve made my own to look as nearly resembling her as I 
could. You see our paint is exactly the same.” 

“ I have observed that, Captain Daggett ; and you might 
say the same of the figure-heads.” 

“ Ay, ay ; when I was over on the P’int, they told me 
the name of the carver, in Boston, who cut your seal, and 
I sent to him to cut me a twin. “ If they lay in a ship- 
yard, side by side, I don’t think you could tell one from 
the othei.” 


THE SEA LIONS. 119 

So it seems, sir. Pray have n’t you a man aboard 
there by the name of Watson ? ” 

“ Ay, ay — he ’s my second mate. I know what you 
mean, Captain Gar’ner — you ’re right enough, ’t is the 
same hand who was aboard you ; but wanting a second 
officer, I offered him the berth, and he thought that better 
than taking a foremast lay in your craft.” 

This explanation probably satisfied all who heard it, 
though the truth was not more than half told. In point of 
fact, Watson was engaged as Daggett’s second mate before 
he had ever laid eyes on Roswell Gardiner, and h*d been 
sent to watch the progress of the work on Oyster Pond, as 
has been previously stated. It was so much in the natural 
order of events for a man to accept preferment when of- 
fered, however, that even Gardiner himself blamed the de- 
linquent for the desertion far less than he had previously 
done. In the mean time the conversation proceeded. 

“ You told us nothing of your having that schooner fit- 
ting, when you were on the Point,” observed Roswell Gar- 
diner, whose thoughts just then happened to advert to this 
particular fact. 

“My mind was pretty much taken up with the affairs 
)f my poor uncle, I suppose, Captain Gar’ner. Death 
must visit each of us, once ; nevertheless, it makes us all 
melancholy when he comes among friends.” 

Now Roswell Gardiner was not in the least sentimental, 
nor had he the smallest turn towards indulging in moral 
inferences, from ordinary events ; but, this answer seemed 
so proper, that it found no objection in his mind. Still, 
the young man had his suspicions on the subject of the 
equipment of the other schooner, and suspicions that were 
now active and keen, and which led him directly to fancy 
that Daggett had also some clew to the very objects he was 
after himself. Singular as it may seem at first, Deacon 
Pratt’s interests were favorably affected by this unexpected 
meeting with the Sea Lion of Holmes’s Hole. From the 
first, Roswell Gardiner had been indisposed to give full 
credit to the statements of the deceased mariner, ascribing 
no small part of his account to artifice, stimulated by a 


120 


THE SEA LIONS. 


desire to render himself important. But now that he 
found one of this man’s family embarked in an enterprise 
similar to his own, his views of its expediency were sensi- 
bly changed. Perfectly familiar with the wary economy 
with which every interest was regulated in that part of the 
world, he did not believe a company of Martha’s Vineyard 
men would risk their money in an enterprise that they had 
not good reasons for believing would succeed. Although 
it exceeded his means to appreciate fully the information 
possessed by the Vineyard folk, and covetousness did not 
quicker* his faculties on this subject, as they had quickened 
those of the deacon, he could see enough to satisfy his 
mind that either the sealing-islands, or the booty of the 
pirates, or both, had a reality, in the judgments of others, 
which had induced them also to risk their money in turn- 
ing their knowledge to account. The effect of this convic- 
tion was very natural. It induced Roswell to regard the 
charts, and his instructions, and all connected with his 
voyage, as much more serious matters than he had orig- 
inally been inclined to do. Until now, he had thought it 
well enough to let the deacon have his fancies, relying on 
his own ability to obtain a cargo for the schooner, by visit- 
ing sealing stations where he had been before ; but now 
he determined to steer at once for Daggett’s Islands, as he 
and his owner named the land revealed to them, and ascer- 
tain what could be done there. He thought it probable 
the other Sea Lion might wish to keep him company ; but 
the distance was so great, that a hundred occasions must 
occur when it would be in his power to shake off such a 
consort, should he deem it necessary. 

For several hours the two schooners stood on in com- 
pany, keeping just without hailing distance apart, and 
sailing so nearly alike as to render it hard to say which 
craft had the best of it. There was nothing remarkable in 
the fact that two vessels, built for the same trade, should 
have a close general resemblance to each other ; but it was 
not common to find them so moulded, stowed, sparred and 
handled, that their rate of sailing should be nearly identical. 
If there was any difference, it was slightly in favor of the 


THE SEA LIONS. 


121 


Sea Lion of the Vineyard, which rather drew ahead of her 
consort, if consort the other Sea Lion could be termed, in 
the course of the afternoon. 

It is scarcely necessary to say that many were the specu- 
lations that were made on board these rival vessels — com- 
petitors now for the commonest glories of their pursuits, as 
well as in the ultimate objects of their respective voyages. 
On the part of Roswell Gardiner and his two mates, they 
did not fail, in particular, to comment on the singularity 
of the circumstance that the Sea Lion of the Vineyard 
should be so far out of her direct line of sailing. 

“Although we have had the wind at sow- west” {sow- 
west always, as pronounced by every seaman, from the 
Lord High Admiral of England, when there happens to be 
such a functionary, down to the greenest hand on board 
the greenest sealer) “ for these last few days,” said Hazard, 
“anybody can see we shall soon have easterly weather 
There ’s an easterly feel in the air, and all last night the 
water had an easterly glimmer about it. Now, why a man 
who came out of the Vineyard Sound, and who had noth- 
ing to do but just to clear the west eend of his own island, 
and then lay his course off yonder to the southward and 
eastward, should bear up cluss (. Anglice , close) under Blok, 
and stretch out to sea, for all the world as if he was a 
Stunnin’tun chap, or a New Lunnoner, that had fallen a 
little to leeward, is more than I can understand, Captain 
Gar’ner ! Depend on it, sir, there *s a reason for ’t. Men 
don’t put schooners into the water, nowadays, and give 
them costly outfits, with three whale-boats, and sealin’ gear 
in abundance, just for the fun of making fancy traverses, 
on or off a coast, like your yacht gentry, who never know 
what they would be at, and who never make a v’y’ge worth 
speaking on.” 

“ I have been turning all this over in my mind, Mr. 
Hazard,” answered the young master, who was amusing 
himself at the moment with strapping a small block, while 
he threw many a glance at the vessel that was just as close 
under his lee as comported with her sailing. “ There is a 
reason for it, as you say ; but I can find no other than the 


122 


THE SEA LIONS. 


fact that she has come so much out of her way, in order 
to fall in with us ; knowing that we were to come round 
Montauk at a particular time.” 

“ Well, sir, that may have been her play ! Men bound 
the same way often wish to fall into good company, to 
make the journey seem the shorter, by making it so much 
the pleasanter.” 

“ Those fellows can never suppose the two schooners 
will keep in sight of each other from forty-one degrees 
north all the way to seventy south, or perhaps farther 
south still ! If we remain near each other a week, ’t will 
be quite out of the common way.” 

“ I don’t know that, sir. I was once in a sealer that, do 
all she could, could n’t get shut of a curious neighbor. 
When seals are scarce, and the master don’t know where 
to look for ’em, he is usually glad to drop into some vessel’s 
wake, if it be only to pick up her leavin’s;” 

“ Outfits are not made on such chances as that. These 
Vineyard people know where they are going as well as we 
know ourselves ; perhaps better.” 

“There is great confidence aboard here, in the master, 
Captain Gar’ner. I overheard the watch talking the mat- 
ter over early this morning ; and there was but one opin- 
ion among them , I can tell you, sir.” 

“ Which opinion was, Mr. Hazard ” — 

“ That a lay aboard this craft would be worth a lay and 
a half aboard any other schooner out of all America. Sail- 
ors go partly on skill and partly on luck. I ’ve known 
hands that would n’t ship with the best masters that evei 
sailed a vessel, if they did n’t think they was lucky as well 
as skillful.” 

“ Ay, ay, it ’s all luck ! Little do these fellows think of 
Providence — or of deserving , or undeserving. Well, I 
hope the schooner will not disappoint them — or her master 
either. But whaling and sealing, and trusting to the 
chances of the ocean, and our most flattering hopes, may 
mislead us after all.” 

“ Ay, ay, sir ; nevertheless, Captain Gar’ner has a name 
and men will trust to it ! ” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


VZb 

Our young master could not but be flattered at this, 
which came at a favorable moment to sustain the resolu- 
tions awakened by the competition with the rival schooner. 
Although so obviously competitors, and that in a matter of 
trade, the interest which above all others is apt to make 
men narrow-minded and hostile to each other, though the 
axiom would throw this particular reproach on doctors , 
there were no visible signs that the two vessels did not 
maintain the most amicable relations. As the day advanced 
the wind fell, and after many passages of nautical compli- 
ments, by means of signals and the trumpet, Roswell Gar- 
diner fairly lowered a boat into the water, and went a 
“ gamming,” as it is termed, on board the other schooner. 

Each of these little vessels was well provided with boats, 
and those of the description in common use among whalers. 
A whale-boat differs from the ordinary jolly-boat, launch, 
or yawl — gigs, barges, dinguis, &c., &c., being exclusively 
for the service of vessels of war — in the following particu- 
lars; viz, it is sharp at both ends, in order that it may 
“back off,” as well as “pull on it steers with an oar, in- 
stead of with a rudder, in order that the bows may be 
thrown round to avoid danger when not in motion ; it is 
buoyant, and made to withstand the shock of waves at 
both ends ; and it is light and shallow, though strong, that 
it may be pulled with facility. When it is remembered that 
one of these little egg-shells — little as vessels, though of 
good size as boats — is often dragged through troubled 
waters at the rate of ten or twelve knots, and frequently at 
even a swifter movement, one can easily understand how 
much depends on its form, buoyancy, and strength. Among 
seamen, it is commonly thought that a whale-boat is the 
safest craft of the sort in which men can trust themselves 
in rough water. 

Captain Daggett received his guest with marked civility, 
though in a quiet, eastern way. The rum and water were 
produced, and a friendly glass was taken by one after the 
other. The two masters drank to each other’s success, and 
many a conventional ^remark was made between them on 
the subject of sea-lions, sea-elephants, and the modes of 


124 


THE SEA LIOHS. 


capturing such animals. Even Watson, semi-deserter as 
he was, was shaken cordially by the hand, and his question- 
able conduct overlooked. The ocean has many of the as- 
pects of eternity, and often disposes mariners to regard 
their fellow-creatures with an expansiveness of feeling 
suited to their common situations. Its vastness reminds 
them of the time that has neither beginning nor end ; its 
ceaseless movement, of the never-tiring impulses of human 
passions ; and its accidents and dangers, of the Providence 
which protects all alike, and which alone prevents our be- 
ing abandoned to the dominion of chance. 

Roswell Gardiner was a kind-hearted man, moreover, 
and was inclined to judge his fellows leniently. Thus it 
was that his “good evening” at parting, to Watson, was 
just as frank and sincere as that he bestowed on Captain 
Daggett himself. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


125 


CHAPTER IX. 

Roll on, thou deep and dark blue ocean roll ! 

Ten thousand fleets sweep over thee in vain ; 

Man marks the earth with ruin — his control 
Stops with the shore ; — upon the watery plain 
The wrecks are all thy deeds, nor doth remain 
A shadow of man’s ravage, save his own, 

• When for a moment, like a drop of rain, 

He sinks into thy depths with bubbling groan. 

Without a grave, unknelled, uncoffiued, and unknown. 

Byron. 

That evening the sun set in clouds, though the eastern 
horizon was comparatively clear. There was, however, an 
unnatural outline to objects, by which their dimensions 
were increased, and in some degree rendered indefinite. 
We do not know the reason why the wind at east should 
produce these phenomena, nor do we remember ever to 
have met with any attempt at a solution ; but of the fact, 
we are certain, by years of observation. In what is called 
“ easterly weather,” objects are seen through the medium 
of a refraction that is entirely unknown in a clear north- 
wester; the crests of the seas emit a luminous light that is 
far more apparent than at other times ; and the face of the 
ocean, at midnight, often wears the aspect of a clouded 
day. The nerves, too, answer to this power of the eastern 
winds. We have a barometer within that can tell when 
the wind is east without looking abroad, and one that never 
errs. It is true that allusions are often made to these pe- 
culiarities, but where are we to look for the explanation ? 
On the coast of America the sea-breeze comes from the 
rising sun, while on that of Europe it blows from the land ; 
but no difference in these signs of its influence could we 
ever discover on account of this marked distinction. 

Roswell Gardiner found the scene greatly changed when 
he came on deck next morning. The storm, which had 


126 


THE SEA LIONS. 


been brewing so long, had come at last, and the wind was 
blowing a little gale from the southeast. The quarter 
from which the air came had compelled the officer of the 
watch to haul up on the larboard tack, or with the schoon- 
er’s head to the southward and westward ; a course that 
might do for a few days, provided it did not blow too heav- 
ily. The other tack would not have cleared the shoals, 
which stretched away to a considerable distance to the 
eastward. Hazard had got in his flying-jib, and had taken 
the bonnets off his foresail and jib, to prevent the craft 
burying. He had also single-reefed his mainsail and fore- 
topsail. The Sea Lion of the Vineyard imitated each 
movement, and was brought down precisely to the same 
canvas as her consort, and .on the same tack. At that 
moment the two vessels were not a cable’s length asunder, 
the Oyster Ponders being slightly to leeward. Their 
schooner, however, had a trifling advantage in sailing 
when it blew fresh and the water was rough ; which ad- 
vantage was now making itself apparent, as the two craft 
struggled ahead through the troubled element. 

“ I wish we were two hundred miles to the eastward,” 
observed the young master to his first officer, as soon as 
his eye had taken in the whole view. “ I am afraid we 
shall get jammed in on Cape Hatteras. That place is 
always in the way with the wind at southeast, and a 
vessel going to the southward. We are likely to have a 
dirty time of it, Mr. Hazard.” 

“ Ay, ay, sir, dirty enough,” was the careless answer. 
“ I ’ve known them that would go back and anchor in Fort 
Pond Bay, or even in Gardiner’s, until this southeaster 
had blown itself out.” 

“I couldn’t think of that! We are a hundred miles 
southeast of Montauk, and if I run the craft into any 
place, it shall be into Charleston, or some of the islands 
along that coast. Besides, we can always wear off the 
laud, and place ourselves a day’s run farther to the south- 
ward, and we can then give the shoals a wide berth on the 
other tack. If we were in the bight of the coast between 
Long Island and Jersey, ’t would be another matter ; but, 


THE SEA LIONS. 127 

out here, where we are, 1 should be ashamed to look the 
deacon in the face if I did n’t hold on.” 

“ I only made the remark, Captain Gar’ner, by way of 
saying something. As for getting to the southward, close 
in with our own coast, I don’t know that it will be of much 
use to a craft that wishes to stand so far to the eastward, 
since the trades must be met well to windward, or they 
had better not be met at all. For my part, I would as 
soon take my chance of making a passage to the Cape de 
Verds or their neighborhood, by lifting my anchor from 
Gardiner’s Bay, three days hence, as by meeting the next 
shift of wind down south, off Charleston or Tybee.” 

“ We should be only five hundred miles to windward, in 
the latter case, did the wind come from the southwest, 
again, as at this season of the year it is very likely to do. 
But it is of no consequence ; men bound where we have 
got to go, ought not to run into port every time the wind 
comes out foul. You know as well as I do, Mr. Hazard, 
that away down south, yonder, a fellow thinks a gale of 
wind is a relief, provided it brings clear water with it. I 
would rather run a week among islands, than a single day 
among icebergs. One knows where to find land, for that 
never moves ; but your mountains that float about, are here 
to-day, and there to-morrow.” 

“ Quite true, sir,” returned Hazard, “ and men that take 
their lays in sealers, are not to expect anything but squalls. 
I ’m ready to hold on as long as our neighbor yonder ; he 
seems to be trimming down to it, as if in raal earnest to 
get ahead.” 

This was true enough. The Sea Lion of the Vineyard 
was doing her best, all this time ; and though unable to 
keep her station on her consort’s weather bow, where she 
had been most of the morning, she was dropped so very 
slowly as to render the change nearly imperceptible. Now 
it was that the officers and crews of these two crafts 
watched their u behavior,” as it is technically termed, with 
the closest vigilance and deepest interest. Those in the 
Oyster Pond vessel regarded the movements of their con- 
sort, much as a belle in a ball-room observes the effect pro- 


128 


THE SEA LIONS. 


duced by the sister belles around her ; or a rival physician 
notes the prDgress of an operation that is to add new 
laurels, or to cause old ones to wither. Now the lurch 
was commented on ; then the pitch was thought to be too 
heavy ; and Green was soon of opinion that their com- 
petitor was not as easy on her spars as their own schooner. 
In short, every comparison that experience, jealousy, or 
skill could suggest, was freely made ; and somewhat as a 
matter of course, in favor of their own vessel. That 
which was done on board the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond 
was very freely emulated by those on board her namesake 
of the Vineyard. They made their comparisons, and 
formed their conclusions, with the same deference to self- 
esteem, and the same submission to hope, as had been ap- 
parent among their competitors. It would seem to be a 
law of nature that men should thus flatter themselves, and 
perceive the mote in the eye of their neighbor, while the 
beam in their own escapes. 

Had there been an impartial judge present, he might 
have differed from both sets of critics. Such a person 
would have seen that one of these schooners excelled in 
this quality, while the other had an equal advantage in an- 
other. In this way, by running through the list of prop- 
erties that are desirable in a ship, he would, most probably, 
have come to the conclusion that there was not much to 
choose between the two vessels ; but that each had been 
constructed with an intelligent regard to the particular 
service in which she was ,about to be employed, and both 
were handled by men who knew perfectly well how to take 
care of craft of that description. 

The wind gradually increased in strength, and -eail was 
shortened in the schooners, until each was finally brought 
down to a close-reefed foresail. This would have been 
heaving the vessels to, had they not been kept a little off, 
in order to force them through the water. To lie-to, in 
perfection, some after-sail might have been required ; but 
neither master saw a necessity, as yet, of remaining station- 
ary. It was thought better to wade along some two knots, 
than to be pitching and lurching with nothing but a drift. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


129 


or leeward set. In this, both masters were probably right, 
and found their vessels farther to windward in the end, 
than if they had endeavored to hold their own, by lying-to 
The great difficulty they had to contend with in keeping a 
little off, was the danger of seas coming on board ; but as 
yet the ocean was not sufficiently aroused to make this 
very hazardous, and both schooners, having no reaL cargoes, 
were light and buoyant, and floated dry. Had they en- 
countered the sea there was, with full freights in their 
holds, it might have been imprudent to expose them even 
to this remote chance of having their decks swept. Water 
comes aboard of small vessels, almost without an exception, 
in head winds and seas ; though the contrivances of modern 
naval architecture have provided defences that make mer- 
chant vessels, now, infinitely more comfortable, in this re- 
spect, than they were at the period of which we are 
writing. 

At the end of three days, Roswell Gardiner supposed 
himself to be about the latitude of Cape Henry, and some 
thirty or forty leagues from the land. It was much easier 
to compute the last, than the first of these material facts. 
Of course he had no observations. The sun had not been 
visible since the storm commenced, and nearly half the 
time, during the last day, the two vessels were shut in from 
one another by mists and a small rain. It blew more in 
squalls than it had done, and the relative positions of the 
schooners were more or less affected by the circumstance. 
Sometimes one would be to windward, and ahead ; then 
the other would obtain a similar advantage. Once or twice 
they seemed about to separate, the distance between them 
getting to be so considerable, as, apparently, to render it 
impossible to keep in company ; then the craft would 
change places, by a slow process, passing quite near to 
each other again. No one could tell, at the moment, pre- 
cisely why these variations occurred ; though the reasons, 
generally, were well understood by all on board them. 
Squalls, careless steering, currents, eddies, and all the acci- 
dents of the ocean, contribute to create these vacillating 
movements, which will often cause two vessels of equal 


130 


THE SEA LIONS. 


speed, and under the same canvas, to seem to be of very 
different qualities. In the nights, the changes were greatest, 
often placing the schooners leagues asunder, and seemingly 
separating them altogether. But Roswell Gardiner be- 
came satisfied that Captain Daggett stuck by him inten- 
tionally ; for on all such occasions if his schooner hap- 
pened to be out of the way, he managed to close again, ere 
the danger of separating became too great to be overcome. 

Our mariners judged of their distance from the land by 
means of the lead. If the American coast is wanting in 
the sublime and picturesque, and every traveler must ad- 
mit its defects in both, it has the essential advantage of 
graduated soundings. So regular is the shoaling of the 
water, and so studiously have the fathoms been laid down, 
that a cautious navigator can always feel his way into the 
coast, and never need place his vessel on the beach, as is 
so often done, without at least knowing that he was about 
•to do so. Men become adventurous by often-repeated 
success ; and the struggles of competition, the go-ahead-ism 
of the national character, and the trouble it gives to sound 
in deep water, all contribute to cast away the reckless and 
dashing navigator, on this as well as on other coasts, and 
this to his own great surprise ; but whenever such a thing 
does happen, unless in cases of stress of weather, the reader 
may rest assured it is because those who have had charge 
of the stranded vessel have neglected to sound. The mile- 
stones on a highway do not more accurately note the dis- 
tances, than does the lead on nearly the whole of the 
American coast. Thus Roswell Gardiner judged himself 
to be about thirty-two or three marine leagues from the 
land, on the evening of the third day of that gale of wind. 
He placed the schooner in the latitude of Cape Henry on 
less certain data, though that was the latitude in which he 
supposed her to be, by dead reckoning. 

“ I wish I knew where Daggett makes himself out,” said 
the young master, just as the day closed on a most stormy 
and dirty-looking night. “ I don’t half like the appearance 
of the weather ; but I do not wish to wear off the land, 
with that fellow ahead and nearer to the danger, if there 
be any, than we are ourselves.” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


181 


Here Roswell Gardiner manifested a weakness that lies 
at the bottom of half our blunders. He did not like to be 
outdone by a competitor, even in his mistakes. If the Sea 
Lion of Holmes's Hole could hold on, on that tack, why 
might not the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond do the same ? It 
is by this process of human vanity that men sustain each 
other in wrong, and folly obtains the sanction of numbers, 
if not that of reason. In this practice we see one of the 
causes of the masses becoming misled, and this seldom 
happens without their becoming oppressive. 

Roswell Gardiner, however, did not neglect the lead. 
The schooner had merely to luff close to the wind, and 
they were in a proper state to sound. This they did twice, 
during that night, and with a very sensible diminution in 
the depth of the water. It was evident that the schooner 
was getting pretty close in on the coast, the wind coming 
out nearly at south, in squalls. Her commander held on, 
for he thought there were indications of a change, and he 
still did not like to wear so long as his rival of the Viue- 
yard kept on the larboard tack. In this way, each en- 
couraging the other in recklessness, did these two crafts 
run nearly into the lion’s jaw, as it might be ; for, when 
the day reappeared, the wind veered round to the east- 
ward, a little northerly, bringing the craft directly on a lee- 
shore, blowing at the time so heavily as to render a fore- 
sail reefed down to a mere rag more canvas than the little 
vessels could well bear. As the day returned, and the 
drizzle cleared off a little, land was seen to leeward, stretch- 
ing slightly to seaward, both ahead and astern ! On con- 
sulting his charts, and after getting a pretty good look at 
the coast from aloft, Roswell Gardiner became satisfied 
that he was off Currituck, which placed him near six de- 
grees to the southward of his port of departure, and about 
four to the westward. Our young man now' deeply felt 
that a foolish rivalry had led him into an error, and he re- 
gretted that he had not wore the previous evening, when 
he might have had an offing that would have enabled him 
to stand in either direction, clearing the laud. As things 
were, he was not by any means certain of the course he 
orght to pursue. 


132 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Little did Gardiner imagine that the^ reason why Dag- 
gett had thus stood on, was solely the wish to keep him 
company ; for that person, in consequence of Gardiner’s 
running so close in towards the coast, had taken up the 
notion that the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond meant to pass 
through the West Indies, visiting the key which was 
thought to contain treasure, and of which he had some 
accounts that had aroused all his thirst for gold, without 
giving him the clew necessary to obtain it. Thus it was 
that a mistaken watchfulness on one side, and a mistaken 
pride on the other, had brought these two vessels into as 
dangerous a position as could have been obtained for them 
by a direct attempt to place them in extreme jeopardy. 

About ten, the gale was at its height, the wind still 
hanging at east, a little northerly. In the course of the 
morning, the officers on board both schooners, profiting by 
lulls and clear moments, had got so many views of the land 
from aloft, as to be fully aware of their respective situa- 
tions. All thoughts of competition and watchfulness had 
now vanished. Each vessel was managed with a reference 
solely to her safety ; and, as might have been foreseen 
when true seamen handled both, they had recourse to the 
same expedients to save themselves. The mainsails of 
both crafts were set, balance-reefed, and the hulls were 
pressed up against the wind and sea, while they were 
driven ahead with increased momentum. 

“ That mainmast springs like a whalebone whip-handle, 
sir,” said Hazard, when this new experiment had been 
tried some ten minutes or more. “ She jumps from one sea 
to another, like a frog in a hurry to hop into a puddle ! ” 

“ She must stand it, or go ashore,” answered Gardiner, 
coolly, though in secret he was deeply concerned. “ Did 
Deacon Pratt forgive me, should we lose the schooner, I 
never could forgive myself ! ” 

“ Should we lose the schooner, Captain Gar’ner, few of 
us would escape drowning, to feel remorse or joy. Look 
at that coast, sir — it is clear now, and a body can see a 
good bit of it — never did I put eyes upon a less promising 
land-fall, for strangers to make.” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


133 


Roswell Gardiner did look, as desired, and he fully 
agreed with Hazard in opinion. Ahead, and astern, the 
land trended to seaward, placing the schooners in a curve 
of the coast, or what seamen term a bight, rendering it 
quite impossible for the vessels to lay out past either of the 
headlands in sight. The whole coast was low, and endless 
lines of breakers were visible along it, flashing up with 
luminous crests that left no doubt of their character, or of 
the dangers that they so plainly denoted. At times, col- 
umns of water shot up into the air like enormous jets and 
the spray was carried inland for miles. Then it was that 
gloom gathered around the brows of the seamen, who fully 
comprehended the nature of the danger that was so plainly 
indicated. The green hands were the least concerned, 
“ knowing nothing and fearing nothing,” as the older sea- 
men are apt to express their sense of this indifference on 
the part of the boys and landsmen. 

According to the calculations of those on board the Sea 
Lion of Oyster Pond, they had about two miles of drift 
before they should be in the breakers. They were on the 
best tack, to all appearances, and that was the old one, or 
the same leg that had carried them into the bight. To 
wear now, indeed, would be a very hazardous step, since 
every inch of room was of importance. Gardiner’s secret 
hope was that they might find the inlet that led into Curri- 
tuck, which was then open, though we believe it has since 
been closed, in whole or in part, by the sands. This often 
happens on the American coast, very tolerable passages 
existing this year for vessels of an easy draught, that shall 
be absolutely shut up, and be converted into visible beach, 
a few years later. The waters within will then gain head, 
and break out, cutting themselves a channel, that remains 
open until a succession of gales drives in the sands upon 
them from the outside once more. 

Gardiner well knew he was on the most dangerous part 
of the whole American coast, in one sense, at least. The 
capacious sounds that spread themselves within the long 
beaches of sand were almost as difficult of navigation as 
any shoals to the northward ; yet would he gladly have 


134 


THE SEA LIONS. 


been in one in preference to clawing off breakers on their 
outside. As between the two schooners, the Vineyard-men 
had rather the best of it, being near a cable’s length to 
windward, and so much farther removed from destruction. 
The difference, however, was of no great account in the 
event of the gale continuing, escape being utterly impossi- 
ble for either in that case. So critical was the situation 
of both crafts becoming, indeed, that neither could now 
afford to yield a single fathom of the ground she held. 

All eyes were soon looking for the inlet, it having been 
determined to keep the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond away 
from it, should it appear to leeward, under circumstances 
that would allow of her reaching it. The line of breakers 
was now very distinctly visible, and each minute did it not 
only appear to be, but it was in fact nearer and nearer. 
Anchors were cleared away, and ranges of cable over- 
hauled, anchoring being an expedient that a seaman felt' 
bound to resort to, previously to going ashore, though it 
would be with very little hope of ground-tackles holding. 

The schooner had been described by Hazard as “ jump- 
ing” into the sea. This expression is not a bad one, as 
applied to small vessels in short seas, and it was particu- 
larly apt on this occasion. Although constructed with 
great care forward as to buoyancy, this vessel made 
plunges into the waves she met that nearly buried her ; 
and, once or twice, the shocks were so great, that those on 
board her could with difficulty persuade themselves they 
had not struck the bottom. The lead, nevertheless, still 
gav* water sufficient, though it was shoaling fast, and: with 
a most ominous regularity. Such was the actual state of 
things when the schooner made one of her mad plunges, 
and was met by a force that seemed to check her forward 
movement as effectually as if she had hit a rock. The 
mainmast was a good spar in some respects, but it wanted 
wood. An inch or two more in diameter might have 
saved it ; but the deacon had been induced to buy it to 
save his money, though remonstrated with at the time. 
This spar now snapped in two, a few feet from the deck, 
and falling to leeward, it dragged after it the head of the 


THE SEA LIONS. 


135 


foremast, leaving the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond actually 
in a worse situation, just at that moment, than if she had 
no spars at all. ' 

Roswell Gardiner now appeared in a new character. 
Hitherto he had been silent, but observant ; issuing his 
orders in a way not to excite the men, aud with an air of 
unconcern that really had the effect to mislead most of 
them on the subject of his estimate of the danger they 
were in. Concealment, however, was no longer possible, 
and our young master came out as active as circumstances 
required, foremost in every exertion, and issuing his orders 
amid the gale trumpet-tongued. His manner, so full of 
animation, resolution, and exertion, probably prevented 
despair from getting the ascendency at that important 
moment. He was nobly sustained by both his mates ; and 
three or four of the older seamen now showed themselves 
men to be relied on to the last. 

The first step was to anchor. Fortunately, the foresight 
of Gardiner had everything ready for this indispensable 
precaution. Without anchoring, ten minutes would prob- 
ably have carried the schooner directly down upon the 
breakers, leaving no hope for the life of any on board her, 
and breaking her up into chips. Both bowers were let go 
at once, and long ranges of cable given. The schooner was 
snubbed without parting anything, and was immediately 
brought head to sea. This relieved her at once, and there 
was a moment that her people fancied she might ride out 
the gale where she was, could they only get clear of the 
wreck. Axes, hatchets, and knives were freely used, and 
Roswell Gardiner saw the mass of spars and rigging float 
clear of him with a delight he did not desire to conceal. 
As it drove to leeward, he actually cheered. A lead was 
instantly dropped alongside, in order to ascertain whether 
the anchors held. This infallible test, however, gave the 
melancholy certainty that the schooner was still drifting 
her length in rather less than two minutes. 

The only hope now was that the flukes of the anchors 
might catch in better holding ground than they had yet 
met with. The bottom was hard sand, however, which 


186 


THE SEA LIONS. 


never gives a craft the chance that it gets from mud. By 
Roswell Gardiner’s calculations, an hour, at the most, 
would carry them into the breakers ; possibly less time. 
The Sea Lion of Holmes’s Hole was to windward a cable’s 
length when this accident happened to her consort, and 
about half a mile to the southward. Just at that instant 
the breakers trended seaward, ahead of that schooner, ren- 
dering it indispensable for her to wear. This was done 
bringing her head to the southward, and she now came 
struggling directly on towards her consort. The operation 
of wearing had caused her to lose ground enough to bring 
her to leeward of the anchored craft, and nearer to the 
danger. 

Roswell Gardiner stood on his own quarter-deck, anx- 
iously watching the drift of the other schooner, as she 
drew near in her labored way, struggling ahead through 
billows that were almost as white as the breakers that 
menaced them with destruction to leeward. The anchored 
vessel, though drifting, had so slow a movement that it 
served to mark the steady and rapid set of its consort to- 
wards its certain fate. At first, it seemed to Gardiner 
that Daggett would pass just ahead of him, and he trembled 
for his cables, which occasionally appeared above water, 
stretched like bars of iron, for the distance of thirty or 
forty fathoms. But the leeward set of the vessel under 
way was too fast to give her any chance of bringing this 
new danger on her consort. When a cable’s length dis- 
tant, the Sea Lion of the Vineyard did seem as if she 
might weather her consort ; but ere that short space was 
passed over, it was found that she fell off so fast, by means 
of her drift, as to carry her fairly clear of her stern. The 
two masters, holding with one hand to some permanent 
object by which to steady themselves, and each pressing 
his tarpaulin firmly down on his head with the other, had 
a minute’s conversation when the schooners were nearest 
together. 

“ Do your anchors hold ? ” demanded Daggett, who was 
the first to speak, and who put his question as if he thought 
his own fate depended on the answer. 


THE SEA LIONS. 137 

“ I ’m sorry to say they do not. We drift our length in 
about two minutes.” 

44 That will put off the evil moment an hour or two. 
Look what a wake we are making ! ” 

Sure enough, that wake was frightful ! No sooner was 
the head of the Sea Lion of the Vineyard fairly up with 
the stern of the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond than Gardiner 
perceived that she went off diagonally, moving quite as fast 
to leeward as she went ahead. This was so very obvious 
that a line drawn from the quarter of Roswell’s craft, in a 
quartering direction, would almost have kept the other 
schooner in its range from the moment that her bow liove 
heavily past. 

4 ‘ God bless you ! — God bless you ! ” cried Roswell 
Gardiner, waving his hand in adieu, firmly persuaded 
that he and the Vineyard master were never to meet 
again in this world. 44 The survivors must let the fate 
of the lost be known. At the pinch, I shall out boats if 
I can.” 

The other made no answer. It would have been useless, 
indeed, to attempt it ; since no human voice had power to 
force itself up against such a gale, the distance that had 
now to be overcome. 

44 That schooner will be in the breakers in half an hour,” 
said Hazard, who stood by the side of young Gardiner. 
44 Why don’t he anchor ! No power short of Divine Provi- 
dence can save her.” 

And Divine Providence will do it — thanks to Almighty 
God for his goodness ! ” exclaimed Roswell Gardiner. 
44 Did you perceive that, Mr. Hazard ? ” 

The 44 that ” of our young mariner was, in truth, a most 
momentous omen. The wind had lulled so suddenly that 
the rags of sails which the other schooner carried actually 
flapped. At first our seaman thought she had been be- 
calmed by the swell ; but the change about themselves was 
too obvious to admit of any mistake. It blew terribly, 
again, for a minute ; then there was another lull. Gar- 
diner sprang to the lead-line to see the effect on his own 
vessel. She no longer dragged her anchor ! 


138 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ God is with us ! ” exclaimed the young master — 
blessed forever be his holy name.” 

“ And that of his only and true Son,” responded a voice 
from one at his elbow. 

Notwithstanding the emergency, and the excitement 
produced by this sudden change, Roswell Gardiner turned 
to see from whom this admonition had come. The oldest 
seaman on board, who was Stimson, a Kennebunk man, 
and who had been placed there to watch the schooner’s 
drift, had uttered these unusual words. The fervor with 
which he spoke produced more impression on the young 
master than the words themselves ; the former being very 
unusual among sea-faring men, though the language was 
not so much so. Subsequently, Gardiner remembered that 
little incident, which was not without its results. 

“ I do believe, sir,” cried Hazard, “ that the gale is 
broken. It often happens, on our own coast, that the 
southeaster chop round suddenly, and come out nor’- 
westers. I hope this will not be too late to save the Vine- 
yard chap, though he slips down upon them breakers at a 
most fearful rate.” 

“ There goes his foresail, again — and here is another 
lull ! ” rejoined Gardiner. “ I tell you, Mr. Hazard, we 
shall have a shift of wind — nothing short of which could 
save either of us from these breakers.” 

“ Which comes from the marcy of God Almighty, 
through the intercession of his only Son ! ” added Stimson, 
with the same fervor of manner, though he spoke in a 
very low tone of voice. 

Roswell Gardiner was again surprised, and for another 
moment he forgot the gale and its dangers. Gale it was 
no longer, however, for the lull was now decided, and the 
two cables of the schooner were distended only when the 
loll of the seas came in upon her. This wash of the waves 
still menaced the other schooner, driving her down towards 
the breakers, though less rapidly than before. 

“ Why don’t the fellow anchor ! ” exclaimed Gardiner, 
in his anxiety, all care for himself being now over. “ Un- 
less he anchor, he will yet go into the white water, and be 
lost ! ” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


139 


4C So little does lie think of that, that he is turning out 
his reefs,” answered Hazard. “ See ! there is a hand aloft 
loosening his topsail — and there goes up a whole mainsail, 
already ! ” 

Sure enough, Daggett appeared more disposed to trust 
to his canvas than to his ground-tackle. In a very brief 
space of time he had his craft under whole sail, and was 
struggling, in the puffs, to claw off the land. Presently 
the wind ceased altogether, the canvas flapping so as to be 
audible to Gardiner and his companions, at the distance 
of half a mile. Then the cloth was distended in the op- 
posite direction, and the wind came off the land. The 
schooner’s head was instantly brought to meet the seas, and 
the lead dropped at her side showed that she was moving 
in the right direction. These sudden changes, sometimes 
destructive, and sometimes providential as acts of mercy, 
always bring strong counter-currents of air in their train. 

“ Now we shall have it ! ” said Hazard — “a true nor’- 
wester, and butt-end foremost ! ” 

This opinion very accurately described that which fol 
owed. In ten minutes it was blowing heavily, in a direc 
tion nearly opposite to that which had been the previous 
current of the wind. As a matter of course, the Sea Lion 
of the Vineyard drew off the land, wallowing through the 
meeting billows that still came rolling in from the broad 
Atlantic ; while the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond tended to 
the new currents of air, and rode, as it might be, suspended 
between the two opposing forces, with little or no strain 
on her cables. Gardiner expected to see his consort stand 
out to sea, and gain an offing ; but instead of this, Captain 
Daggett brought his schooner quite near to the disabled 
vessel, and anchored. This act of neighborly kindness was 
too unequivocal to require explanation. It was the inten- 
tion of the Vineyard- men to lie by their consort until she 
was relieved from all apprehensions of danger. The “ butt- 
<jnd ” of the “ nor’wester,” was too large to admit of inter- 
course until next morning, when that which had been a 
small gale had dwindled to a good steady breeze, and the 
seas had gone down, leaving comparatively smooth watei 


140 


THE SEA LIONS. 


all along the coast. The line of white water which marked 
the breakers was there, and quite visible ; but it no longer 
excited apprehension. The jury-masts on board the dis- 
abled craft were got up, and what was very convenient, 
just at that moment the wreck came floating out on the 
ebb, so near to her as to enable the boats to secure all the 
sails and most of the rigging. The main-boom, too, an 
excellent spar, was towed alongside and saved. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


141 


CHAPTER X. 

The shadow from thy brow shall melt, 

The sorrow from thy strain ; 

But where thy earthly smile hath dwelt, 

Our hearts shall thirst in vain. 

Mrs. Hemans. 

As soon as it would do to put his boats in the water, or 
at daylight next morning, Captain Daggett came alongside 
of his consort. He was received with a seaman’s welcome, 
and offers of services were accepted, just as frankly as, 
under reversed circumstances, they would have been made. 
In all this there was a strange and characteristic admixture 
of neighborly and Christian kindness, blended with a keen 
regard of the main chance. If the former duties are rarely 
neglected by the descendants of the Puritans, it may be 
said, with equal truth, that the latter are never lost sight 
of. Speculation and profit are regarded as so many in- 
tegral portions of the duty of man ; and, as our kinsmen of 
Old England have set up an idol to worship, in the form 
of aristocracy, so do our kinsmen of New England pay 
homage to the golden calf. In point of fact, Daggett had 
a double motive in now offering his services to Gardiner ; 
the one being the discharge of his moral obligations, and 
the other a desire to remain near the Sea Lion of Oyster 
Pond, lest she should visit the key, of which he had some 
very interesting memorandums, without having enough to 
find the place unless led there by those who were better 
informed on the subject of its precise locality than he was 
himself. 

The boats of Daggett assisted in getting the wreck 
alongside, and in securing the sails and rigging. Then 
nis people aided in fitting jury-masts ; and, by noon, both 
vessels got under way, and stood along the coast, to the 


142 


THE SEA LIONS. 


southward and westward. Hatteras was no longer terrible, 
for the wind still stood at northwest, and they kept in view 
of those very breakers which, only the day before, they 
would have given the value of both vessels to be certain of 
never seeing again. That night they passed the formidable 
cape, a spit of sand projecting far to seaward, and which 
is on a low beach, and not on any main land at all. Once 
around this angle in the coast, they had a lee, hauling up 
to the southwest. With the wind abeam, they stood on 
the rest of the day, picking up a pilot. The next night 
they doubled Cape Look Out, a very good landmark for 
those going north to keep in view, as a reminder of the 
stormy and sunken Hatteras, and arrived off Beaufort har- 
bor just as the sun was rising, the succeeding morning. 
By this time the northwester was done, and both schooners 
entered Beaufort, with a light southerly breeze, there being 
just water enough to receive them. This was the only 
place on all that coast into which it would have answered 
their purposes to go ; and it was, perhaps, the very port of 
all others that was best suited to supply the present wants 
of Roswell Gardiner. Pine timber, and spars of all sorts, 
abounded in that region ; and the “ Banker,” who acted as 
pilot, told our young master that he could get the very 
sticks he needed, in one hour’s time after entering the 
haven. This term of “ Banker ” applies to a scattering pop- 
ulation of wreckers and fishermen, who dwell on the long, 
low, narrow beaches which extend along the whole of this 
part of the coast, reaching from Cape Fear to near Cape 
Henry, a distance of some hundred and fifty miles. Within 
lie the capacious sounds already mentioned, including Albe- 
marle and Pimlico, and which form the watery portals to 
the sea-shores of all North Carolina. Well is the last 
headland of that region, but one which the schooners did 
not double, named Cape Fear. It is the commencement, 
on that side, of the dangerous part of the coast, and puts 
the mariner on his guard by its very appellation, admonish- 
ing him to be cautious and prudent. 

Off the entrance of Beaufort, a very perfect and beauti- 
ful haven, if it had a greater depth of water, the schooners 


THE SEA LIONS. 


143 


hove-to, in waiting for the tide to rise a little ; and Roswell 
Gardiner took that occasion to go on board the sister craft, 
and express to Daggett a sense of the obligations he felt 
for the services the other had rendered. 

“ Of course you will not think of going in, Captain 
Daggett,” continued our hero, in dwelling on the subject, 
“ after having put yourself, already, to so much unneces- 
sary trouble. If I find the spars the Banker talks of, I 
shall be out again in eight-and-forty hours, and we may 
meet, some months hence, off Cape Horn.” 

“ I ’ll tell you what it is, Gar’ner,” returned the Vine- 
yard mariner, pushing the rum towards his brother master, 
“ I’m a plain sort of a fellow, and don’t make much talk 
when I do a thing, but I like good-fellowship. We came 
near going, both of us, — nearer than I ever was before, and 
escape wrackin’ ; but escape we did, — and when men have 
gone through such trials in company, I don’t like the no- 
tion of casting off till I see you all a-tanto ag’in, and with 
as many legs and arms as I carry myself. That ’s just my 
feelin’, Gar’ner, and I won’t say whether it’s a right feeliu’ 
or not — help yourself.” 

“ It is a right feeling, as between you and me, Captain 
Daggett, as I can answer for. My heart tells me you are 
right, and I thank you from it, for these marks of friend- 
ship. But you must not forget there are such persons as 
owners, in this world. I shall have trouble enough on my 
hands with my owner, and I do not wish you to have 
trouble with yours. Here is a nice little breeze to take 
you out to sea again ; and by passing to the southward of 
Bermuda, you can make a short cut, and hit the trades far 
enough to windward to answer all your purposes.” 

“ Thankee, thankee, Gar’ner — I know the road, and 
can find the places I ’m going to, though no great naviga- 
tor. Now, I never took a lunar in my life, and can’t do 
anything with a chronometer'; but as for finding the way 
between Martha’s Vineyard and Cape Horn, I ’ll turn my 
back on no shipmaster living.” 

“ I ’m afraid, Captain Daggett, that we have both of us 
turned our backs on our true course, when we suffered 


THE SEA LIONS. 


144 

ourselves to get jammed away down here, on Hatteras. 
Why, I never saw the place before, and never wish to see 
it again ! It ’s as much out of the track of a whaler, or 
sealer, as Jupiter is out of the track of Mars, or Venus.” 

“ Oh, there go your lunars, about which I know nothing, 
and care nothing. I tell you, Gar’ner, a man with a good 
judgment can just as well jog about the ’arth, without any 
acquaintance with lunars, as he can with. Then, your 
sealer has n’t half as much need of your academy-sort of 
navigation, as another man. More than half of our calling 
is luck ; and all the best sealing stations I ever heard of, 
have been blundered on by some chap who has lost his way. 
I despise lunars, if the truth must be said ; yet I like to go 
straight to my port of destination. Take a little sugar 
with your rum-and-water — we Vineyard folks like sweet- 
ening.” 

“ For which purpose, or that of going straight to your 
port, Captain Daggett, you ’ve come down here, on your 
way to the Pacific ; or, about five hundred miles out of 
your way ! ” 

“ I came here for company, Gar’ner. We had n’t much 
choice, you must allow, for we could n’t have weathered 
ihe shoals on the other tack. I see no great harm in our 
positions, if you had n’t got dismasted. That ’s a two or 
three hundred dollar job, and may make your owner grum- 
ble a little, but it ’s no killing matter. I ’ll stick by you, 
and you can tell the deacon as much in the letter you ’ll 
write him when we get in.” 

“ It seems like doing injustice to your owners, as well 
as to my own, keeping you here, Captain Daggett,” re- 
turned Roswell, innocently, for he had not the smallest 
suspicion of the true motive of all this apparent good-fel- 
lowship, “ and I really wish you would now quit me.” 

“ I could n’t think of it, Gar’ner. ’T would make an 
awful talk on the Vineyard, -was I to do anything of the 
sort. ‘Stick by your consort,’ is an eleventh command- 
ment, in our island.” 

“ Which is the reason why there are so many old maids 
there, I suppose, Daggett,” cried Roswell Gardiner, laugh 


THE SEA LIONS. 


145 


ing. “ Well, I thank you for your kindness, and will en- 
deavor to remember it when you may have occasion for 
some return. But the tide must be making, and we ought 
to lose no time, unnecessarily. Here ’s a lucky voyage to 
us both, Captain Daggett, and a happy return to sweet- 
hearts and wives.” 

Daggett tossed off his glass to this toast, and the two 
then went on deck. Roswell Gardiner thought that a 
kinder ship’s company never sailed together* than this of 
the Sea Lion of Holmes’s Hole ; for, notwithstanding the 
interest of every man on board depended on the returns of 
their own voyage, each and all appeared willing to stick by 
him and his craft so long as there was a possibility of being 
of any service. 

Whalers and sealers do not ship their crews for wages 
in money, as is done with most vessels. So much depends 
on the exertions of the people in these voyages, that it is 
the practice to give every man a direct interest in the re- 
sult. Consequently, all on board engage for a compensa- 
tion to be derived from a division of the return cargo. The 
terms on which a party engages are called his “ lay ; ” and 
he gets so many parts of a hundred, according to station, 
experience, and qualifications. The owner is paid for his 
risk and expenses in the same way, the vessel and outfits 
usually taking about two thirds of the whole returns, while 
the officers and crew get the other. These conditions vary 
a little, as the proceeds of whaling and sealing rise or fall 
in the market, and also in reference to the cost of equip- 
ments. It follows that Captain Daggett and his crew were 
actually putting their hands into their own pockets, viihen 
they lost time in remaining with the crippled craft. This 
Gardiner knew, and it caused him to appreciate their kind 
ness at a rate so much higher than he might otherwise 
have done. 

At first sight, it might seem that all this unusual kind- 
ness was superfluous, and of no avail. This, however, was 
not really the case, since the crew of the second schooner 
was of so much real service in forwarding the equipment of 
the disabled vessel. Beaufort has an excellent harbor for 
10 


146 


THE SEA LIONS. 


vessels of light draught of water like our iwo sealers ,* but 
the town is insignificant, and extra laborers, especially 
those of an intelligence suited to such work, very difficult 
to be had. At the bottom, therefore, Roswell Gardiner 
found his friendly assistants of much real advantage, the 
two crews pushing the work before them with as much 
rapidity as suited even a seaman’s impatience. Aided by 
the crew of his consort, Gardiner got on fast with his re- 
pairs, and on -the afternoon of the second day after he had 
entered Beaufort, he was ready to sail once more ; his 
schooner probably in a better state for service than the day 
she left Oyster Pond. 

The lightning-line did not exist at the period of which 
we are writing. It is our good fortune to be an intimate 
acquaintance of the distinguished citizen who has bestowed 
this great gift on his own country — one that will transmit 
his name to posterity, side by side with that of Fulton. In 
his case, as in that of the last-named inventor, attempts 
have been made to rob him equally of the honors and the 
profits of his very ingenious invention. As respects the 
last, we hold that it is every hour becoming less and less 
possible for any American to maintain his rights against 
numbers. There is no question that the government of 
this great Republic was intended to be one of well-con- 
sidered and upright principles, in which certain questions 
are to be referred periodically to majorities, as the wisest 
and most natural, as well as the most just mode of dispos- 
ing of them. Such a government, well administered, and 
with an accurate observance of its governing principles, 
would probably be the best that human infirmity will allow 
men to administer ; but when the capital mistake is made 
of supposing that mere numbers are to control all things, 
regardless of those great fundamental laws that the state 
has adopted for its own restraint, it may be questioned if 
so loose, and capricious, and selfish a system, is not in 
great danger of becoming the very worst scheme of polity 
that cupidity ever set in motion. The tendency — not the 
spirit of the institutions, the two things being the very 
antipodes of each other, though common minds are so apt 


THE SEA LIONS. 


147 


to confound them — the tendency of the institutions of this 
country, in flagrant opposition to their spirit or intentions , 
which were devised expressly to restrain the disposition of 
men to innovate, is out of all question to foster this great 
abuse, and to place numbers above principles, even when the 
principles were solemnly adopted expressly to bring num- 
bers under the control of a sound fundamental law. This 
influence of numbers, this dire mistake of the very nature 
of liberty, by placing men and their passions above those 
great laws of right which come direct from God himself, is 
increasing in force, and threatens consequences which may 
set at naught all the well-devised schemes of the last gen- 
eration for the security of the state, and the happiness of 
that very people, who can never know either security or 
even peace, until they learn to submit themselves, without 
a thought of resistance, to those great rules of right which in 
truth form the spirit of their institutions, and which are only 
too often in opposition to their own impulses and motives. 

We pretend to no knowledge on the subject of the dates 
of discoveries in the arts and sciences, but well do we re- 
member the earnestness and single-minded devotion to a 
laudable purpose, with which our worthy friend first com 
municated to us his ideas on the subject of using the elec 
trie spark by way of a telegraph. It was in Paris, and 
during the winter of 1831-2, and the succeeding spring, a 
time when we were daily together ; and we have a satisfac- 
tion in recording this date, that others may prove better 
claims if they can. Had Morse set his great invention on 
foot thirty years earlier, Roswell Gardiner might have com- 
municated with his owner, and got a reply, ere he again 
sailed, considerable as was the distance between them. As 
things then were, he was fain to be content with writing a 
letter, which was put into the deacon’s hand about a week 
after it was written, by his niece, on his own return from a 
short journey to Southold, whither he had been to settle 
and discharge a tardy claim against his schooner. 

“ Here is a letter for you, uncle,” said Mary Pratt, 
struggling to command her feelings, though she blushed 
with the consciousness of her own interest in the missiva 


148 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ It came from the Harbor, by some mistake ; Baiting Joe 
bringing it across just after you left home ” 

“ A letter with a post-mark — ‘ Beaufort, N. C.’ Who 
in natur’ can this letter be from ? What a postage, too, 
to charge on a letter ! Fifty cents! ” 

“ That is a proof, sir^ that Beaufort must be a long way 
off. Besides, the letter is double. I think the handwriting 
is Roswell’s.” 

Had the niece fired a six-pounder under her uncle’s ears, 
he would scarcely have been more startled. He even 
turned pale, and instead of breaking the wafer as he had 
been about to do, he actually shrunk from performing the 
act, like one afraid to proceed. 

“ What can this mean ? ” said the deacon, taking a mo- 
ment to recover his voice. “ Gar’ner’s handwriting ! So 
it is, I declare. If that imprudent young man has lost my 
schooner, I ’ll never forgive him in this world, whatever a 
body may be forced to do in the next ! ” 

“ It is not necessary to believe anything as bad as that, 
uncle. Letters are often written at sea, and sent in by 
vessels that are met. I dare sav Roswell has done just 
this.” 

“ Not he — not he — the careless fellow ! He has lost 
that schooner, and all my property is in the hands of wrack- 
ers, who are worse than so many rats n a larder. ‘ Beau- 
fort, N. C.’ Yes, that must be one of the Bahamas, and N. 
C. stands for New Providence — Ah ’s me ! Ah ’s me ! ” 

“ But N. C. does not stand for New Providence — it 
would be N. P. in that case, uncle.” 

“N. C. or N. P., they sound so dreadfully alike that I 
don’t know what to think ! Take the letter and open it. 
Oh ! how big it is — there must be a protest, or some other 
costly thing inclosed.” <r 

Mary did take the letter, and she opened it, though with 
trembling hands. The inclosure soon appeared, and the 
first glance of her eye told her it was a letter addressed to 
herself. 

u What is it, Mary ? What is it, my child ? Do not 
be afraid to tell me,” said the deacon, in a low, faltering 


THE SEA LIONS. 


149 


voice. “ I hope I know how to meet misfortunes with 
Christian fortitude. Has it one of them awful-looking 
seals that Notary Publics use when they want money?” 

Mary blushed rosy-red, and she appeared very charming 
at that moment, though as resolute as ever to give her hand 
only to a youth whose “ God should be her God.” 

“It is a letter to me, sir — nothing else, I do assure you, 
uncle. Roswell often writes to me, as you know ; he has 
sent one of his letters inclosed in this to you.” 

“ Yes, yes, — I ’m glad it ’s no worse. Well, where was 
his letter written ? Does he mention the latitude and longi 
tude ? It will be some comfort to learn that he was well 
to the southward and eastward.” 

Mary’s color disappeared, and a paleness came over her 
face, as she ran through the few first lines of the letter. 
Then she summoned all her resolution, and succeeded in 
telling her uncle the facts. 

“ A misfortune has befallen poor Roswell,” she said, her 
voice trembling with emotion, “ though it does not seem to 
be half as bad as it might have been. 'The letter is written 
at Beaufort, in North Carolina, where the schooner has put 
in to get new masts, having lost those with which she sailed 
in a gale of wind off Cape Hatteras.” v 

“ Hatteras ! ” interrupted the deacon, groaning. “ What 
in natur’ had my vessel to do down there ? ” 

“ I am sure I don’t know, sir — but I had better read 
you the contents of Roswell’s letter, and then you will hear 
the whole story.” 

Mary now proceeded to read aloud. Gardiner gave a 
frank, explicit account of all that had happened since he 
parted with his owner, concealing nothing, and not attempt- 
ing even to extenuate his fault. Of the Sea Lion of 
Holmes’s Hole he wrote at large, giving it as his opinion 
that Captain Daggett really possessed some clew — what 
he did not know — to the existence of the sealing islands, 
though he rather thought that he was not very accurately 
informed of their precise position. As respected the key, 
Roswell was silent, for it did not at all occur to him that 
Daggett knew anything of that part of his own mission. In 


- 150 


THE SEA LIONS. 


consequence of this opinion, not the least suspicion of tho 
motive of the Vineyard-man, in sticking by him, presented 
itself to Gardiner’s mind ; and nothing on the subject was 
communicated in the letter. On the contrary, our young 
master was quite eloquent in expressing his gratitude to 
Daggett and his crew, for the assistance they had volun- 
teered, and without which he could not have been ready to 
go to sea again in less than a week. As it was, the letter 
was partly written as the schooner repassed the bar, and 
was sent ashore by the pilot to be mailed. This fact was 
stated in full, in a postscript. 

“ Volunteered !” groaned the deacon, aloud. “ As if a 
man ever volunteers to work without his .pay ! ” 

“ Roswell tells us that Captain Daggett did, uncle,” an- 
swered Maryp‘ and that it is understood between them he 
is to make no charge for his going into Beaufort, or foi 
anything he did while there. Vessels often help each other 
in this kind way, I should hope, for the sake of Christian 
charity, sir.” 

“ Not without salvage, not without salvage ! Charity is 
a good thing, and it is our duty to exercise it on all occa- 
sions ; but salvage comes into charity all the same as into « 
any other interest. This schooner will ruin me, I fear, 
and leave me in my old age to be supported by the town ! ” 

“ That can hardly happen, uncle, since you owe nothing 
for her, and have your farms, and all your other property 
unincumbered. It is not easy to see how the schooner can 
ruin you.” 

“ Yes, I am undone ” — returned the deacon, beating the 
fl#or with his foot, in nervous agitation — “ as much undone 
as ever Roswell Gar’ner’s father was, and he might have 
been the richest man between Oyster Pond and Riverhead, 
had he kept out of the way of speculation. I remember 
him much better off than I am myself, and he died but 
little more than a beggar. Yes, yes ; I see how it is ; this 
schooner has undone me ! ” 

“ But Roswell sends an account of all that he has paid, 
and draws a bill on you for its payment. The entire 
amount is but one hundred and sixteeen dollars and seven- 
ty-two cents.” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


151 


“ That ’s not for salvage. The next thing will be a de- 
mand for salvage in behalf of the owners and crew of the 
Sea Lion of Hum’ses Hull ! I know how it will be, child ; 
T know how it will be ! Gar’ner has undone me, and I shall 
go down into my grave a beggar, as his%ither has done 
already.” 

“ If such be the fact, uncle, no one but I would be the 
sufferer, and I will strive not to grieve over your losses. 
But here is a paper that Roswell has inclosed in his letter 
to me, by mistake, no doubt. See, sir ; it is an acknowl- 
edgment, signed by Captain Daggett and all his crew, ad- 
mitting that they went into Beaufort with Roswell out of 
good feeling, and allowing that they have no claims to sal- 
vage. Here it is, sir ; you can read it for yourself.” 

The deacon did not only read it — he almost devoured 
the paper, which, as Mary suggested, had been inclosed in 
her letter by mistake. The relief produced by this docu- 
ment so far composed the uncle, that he not only read 
Gardiner’s letter himself, with a very close attention to its 
contents, but he actually forgave the cost of the repairs in- 
curred at Beaufort. While he was in the height of his joy 
at this change in the aspect of things, the niece stole into 
her own room in order to read the missive she had received, 
by herself. 

The tears that Mary Pratt profusely shed over Roswell’s 
letter, were both sweet and bitter. The manifestations of 
his affections for her, which were manly and frank, brought 
tears of tenderness from her eyes ; while the recollection 
of the width of the chasm that separated them, had the ef- 
fect to embitter these proofs of love. Most females would 
have lost the sense of duty which sustained our heroine in 
this severe trial, and, in accepting the man of their heart, 
would have trusted to time, and her own influence, and the 
mercy of Divine Providence, to bring about the change she 
desired ; but Mary Pratt could not thus blind herself to her 
own high obligations. The tie of husband and wife she 
rightly regarded as the most serious of all the obligations 
we can assume, and she could not — would not plight hei 
vows to any man whose “ God was not her God.” 


152 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Still there was much of sweet consolation in this little- 
expected letter from Roswell. He wrote, as he always 
did, simply and naturally, and attempted no concealments. 
This was just as true of his acts, as the master of the 
schooner, as it 0 sls in the character of a suitor. To Mary 
he told the whole story of his weakness, acknowledging 
that a silly spirit of pride which would not permit him to 
seem to abandon a trial of the qualities of the two schoon- 
ers, had induced him to stand on to the westward longer 
than he should otherwise have done, and the currents had 
come to assist in increasing the danger. As for Daggett, 
he supposed him to have been similarly influenced ; though 
he did not withhold his expressions of gratitude for the 
generous manner in which that seaman had stuck to him 
to the last. 

For wear) months did Mary Pratt derive sweet consola- 
tion from her treasure of a letter. It was, perhaps, no 
more than human nature, or woman’s nature at least, that, 
in time,' she got most to regard those passages which best 
answered to the longings of her own heart; and that she 
came at last to read the missive, forgetful in a degree, that 
it was written by one who had deliberately, and as a mat- 
ter of faith, adopted the idea that the Redeemer was not, 
in what may be called the catholic sense of the term, the 
Son of God. The papers gave an account of the arrival 
of the “ Twin Sea Lions,” as the article styled them, in the 
port of Beaufort, to repair damages ; and of their having 
soon sailed again, in company. This paragraph she cut 
out of the journal in which it met her eye, and inclosing it 
in Roswell’s last letter, there was not a day in the succeed- 
ing year in which both were not in her hand, and read for 
the hundredth time, or more. These proofs of tenderness, 
however, are not to be taken as evidence of any lessening 
of principle, or as signs of a disposition to let her judg- 
ment and duty submit to her affection. So far from this, 
her resolution grew with reflection, and her mind became 
more settled in a purpose that she deemed sacred, the 
longer she reflected on the subject. But her prayers iu 
behalf of her absent lover grew more frequent, and much 
more fervent. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


153 

In the mean time, the Twin Lions sailed. On leaving 
Beaufort, they ran off the -coast with a smart breeze from 
southwest, making a leading wind of it. There had been 
some variance of opinion between Daggett and Gardiner, 
touching the course they ought to steer. The last was for 
hauling up higher, and passing to the southward of Ber- 
muda ; while the first contended for standing nearly due 
east, and going to the northward of those islands. Gardi- 
ner felt impatient to repair his blunder, and make the 
shortest cut he could ; whereas Daggett reasoned more 
coolly, and took the winds into the account, keeping in 
view the main results of the voyage. Perhaps the last 
wished to keep his consort away from all the keys, until 
he was compelled to alter his course in a way that would 
leave no doubt of his intentions. Of one thing the last 
was now certain ; he knew by a long trial that the Sea 
Lion of Oyster Pond could not very easily run away from 
the Sea Lion of Holmes’s Hole, and he was fully resolved 
that she should not escape from him in the night, or in 
squalls. As for Roswell Gardiner, not having the smallest 
idea of looking for his key until he came north after visit- 
ing the antarctic circle, he had no notion whatever of the 
reason why the other stuck to him so closely ; and, least 
of all, why he wished to keep him clear of the West In- 
dies, until ready to make a descent on his El Dorado. 

Beaufort lies about two degrees to the northward of the 
four hundred rocks, islets, and small islands which are 
known as the Bermudas ; an advanced naval station that 
belongs to a rival commercial power, and which is occupied 
by that power solely as a check on this republic in the 
event of war. Had the views of real statesmen prevailed 
in America, instead of those of mere politicians, the whole 
energy of this republic would have been long since directed 
to the object of substituting our own flag for that of Eng- 
land in these islands. As things are, there they exist; a 
station for hostile fleets, and receptacle for prizes, and a 
depot for the munitions of war, as if expressly designed 
by nature to hold the whole American coast in command. 
While little men with great names are wrangling about 


154 


THE SEA LIONS. 


southwestern acquisitions, and northeastern boundaries, 
that are of no real moment to the_growth and power o* 
the republic, these islands, that ought never to be out of 
the mind of the American statesman, have not yet entered 
into the account at all ; a certain proof how little the 
minds that do, or ought to, influence events, are really up 
to the work they have been delegated to perform. Mili- 
tary expeditions have twice been sent from this country to 
Canada, when both the Canadas are not of one half the 
importance to the true security and independence of the 
country — (no nation is independent until it holds the con- 
trol of all its greater interests in its own hands) — as the 
Bermudas. When England asked the cession of territory 
undoubtedly American, because it overshadowed Quebec, 
she should have been met with this plain proposition — 

“ Give us the Bermudas, and we will exchange with you. 
You hold those islands as a check on our power, and we 
will hold the angle of Maine for a check on yours, unless 
you will consent to make a fair and mutual transfer. We 
will not attack you for the possession of the Bermudas, for 
we deem a just principle even more important than such an 
accession ; but when you ask us to cede, we hold out our 
hands to take an equivalent in return. The policy of this 
nation is not to be influenced by saw-logs, but by these man- 
ifest, important, and ulterior interests. If you wish Maine, 
give us Bermuda in exchange, or go with your wishes 
ungratified.” Happily, among us, events are stronger than 
men ; and the day is not distant when the mere force of 
circumstances will compel the small-fry of diplomacy to see 
what the real interests and dignity of the republic demand, 
in reference to this great feature of its policy. 

Roswell Gardiner and Daggett had several discussions 
touching the manner in which they ought to pass those 
islands. There were about four degrees to spare between 
the trades and the Bermudas; and the former was of opin-* 
ion that they might pass through this opening, and make 
a straighter wake, than by going farther north. These 
consultations took place from quarter-deck to quarter-deck, 
as the two schooners ran off free, steering directly for the 


THE SEA LIONS. 


155 


islands, as a sort of compromise between the two opinions. 
The distance from the main to the Bermudas is computed 
at about six hundred miles, which gave sufficient leisure for 
the discussion of the subject in all its bearings. The con- 
versations were amicable, and the weather continuing mild, 
and the wind standing, they were renewed each afternoon, 
when the vessels closed, as if expressly to admit of the 
dialogue. In all this time, five days altogether, it was 
further ascertained that the difference in sailing between 
the Twin Lions, as the sailors now began to call the two 
schooners, was barely perceptible. If anything, it was 
slightly in favor of the Vineyard craft, though there yet 
remained many of the vicissitudes of the seas, in which to 
make the trial. While this uncertainty as to the course 
prevailed, the low land appeared directly ahead, when 
Daggett consented to pass it to the southward, keeping the 
cluster in sight, however, as they went steadily on towards 
the southward and eastward. 


156 


THE SEA LIONS. 


CHAPTER XL 

With glossy skin, and dripping mane, 

And reeling limbs, and reeking flank. 

The wild steed’s sinewy nerves still strain 
Up the repelling bank. 

Mazefpa. 

Roswell Gardiner felt as if he could breathe more 
freely when they had run the Summers Group fairly out of 
sight, and the last hummock had sunk into the waves of 
the west. He was now fairly quit of America, and hoped 
to see no more of it, until he made the well-known rock 
that points the way into that most magnificent of all the 
havens of the earth, the bay of Rio de Janeiro. Travelers 
dispute whether the palm ought to be given to this port, or 
to those of Naples and Constantinople. Each, certainly, 
has its particular claims to surpassing beauty, which ought 
to be kept in view in coming to a decision. Seen from its 
outside, with its minarets, and Golden Horn, and Bospho- 
rus, Constantinople is, probably, the most glorious spot on 
earth. Ascend its mountains, and overlook the gulfs of 
Salerno and Gaeta, as well as its own waters, the Cam- 
pagna Felici and the memorials of the past, all seen in 
the witchery of an Italian atmosphere, and the mind be- 
comes perfectly satisfied that nothing equal is to be found 
elsewhere ; but enter the bay of Rio, and take the whole 
of the noble panorama in at a glance, and even the expe- 
rienced traveler is staggered with the stupendous as well 
as bewitching character of the loveliness that meets his eye. 
Witchery is a charm that peculiarly belongs to Italy, as all 
must feel who have ever been brought within its influence ; 
but it is a witchery that is more or less shared by all re- 
gions of low latitude. 

Our two Sea Lions met with no adventures worthy of 


THE SEA LIONS. 


157 


record, until they got well to the southward of the equator, 
They had been unusually successful in getting through the 
calm latitudes ; and forty-six days from Montauk, they 
spoke a Sag Harbor whaler, homeward bound, that had 
come out from Rio only the preceding week, where she had 
been to dispose of her oil. By this ship, letters were sent 
home ; and as Gardiner could now tell the deacon that he 
should touch at Rio even before the time first anticipated, 
he believed that he should set the old man’s heart at peace. 
A little occurrence that took place the very day they parted 
with the whaler, added to the pleasure this opportunity 
of communicating with the owner had afforded. As the 
schooners were moving on in company, about a cable’s 
length asunder, Hazard saw a sudden and extraordinary 
movement jon board the Vineyard Lion, as the men now 
named that vessel, to distinguish her from her consort. 

“ Look out for a spout ! ” shouted the mate to Stimson, 
who happened to be on the foretopsail-yard at work, when 
this unexpected interruption to the quiet of the passage 
occurred. “ There is a man overboard from the other 
schooner, or they see a spout.” 

“ A spout ! a spout ! ” shouted Stimson, in return ; “ and 
a spalm (sperm, or spermaceti, was meant) whale, in the 
bargain ! Here he is, sir, two p’ints on our weather beam.” 

This was enough. If any one has had the misfortune to 
be in a coach drawn by four horses, when a sudden fright 
starts them off at speed, he can form a pretty accurate 
notion of the movement that now took place on board of 
Deacon Pratt’s craft. Every one seemed to spring into 
activity, as if a single will directed a common set of mus- 
cles. Those who were below literally “ tumbled up,” as 
seamen express it, and those who were aloft slid down to 
the deck like flashes of lightning. Captain Gardiner sprang 
out of his cabin, seemingly at a single bound ; at another, 
he was in the whaleboat that Hazard was in the very act 
of lowering into the water, as the schooner rounded-to. 
Perceiving himself anticipated here, the mate turned to the 
boat on the other quarter, and was in her, and in the water 
almost as soon as his commanding officer. 


158 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Although neither of the schooners was thoroughly fitted 
for a whaler, each had lines, lances, harpoons, etc., in readi- 
ness in their quarter-boats, prepared for any turn of luck 
like this which now offered. The process of paddling up 
to whales, which is now so common in the American ships, 
was then very little or not at all resorted to. It is said that 
the animals have got to be so shy, in consequence of being 
so much pursued, that the old mode of approaching them 
will not suffice, and that it now requires much more care 
and far more art to take one of these creatures, than it did 
thirty years since. On this part of the subject, we merely 
repeat what we hear, though we think we can see an ad- 
vantage in the use of the paddle that is altogether independ- 
ent of that of the greater quiet of that mode of forcing a 
boat ahead. He that paddles looks ahead , and the . ap- 
proach is more easily regulated, when the whole of the 
boat’s crew are apprised, by means of their own senses, of 
the actual state of things, than when they attain their ideas 
of them through the orders of an officer. The last must 
govern in all cases, but the men are prepared for them, 
when they can see what is going on, and will be more likely 
to act with promptitude and intelligence, and will be less 
liable to make mistakes. 

The four boats, two from each schooner, dropped into 
the water nearly about the same time. Daggett was at the 
steering-oar of one, as was Roswell at that of another. 
Hazard, and Macy, the chief mate of the Vineyard craft, 
were at the steering-oars of the two remaining boats. All 
pulled in the direction of the spot on the ocean where the 
spouts had been seen. It was the opinion of those who had 
been aloft, that there were several fish ; and it was certain 
that they were of the most valuable species, or the sperma- 
ceti, one barrel of the oil of which was worth about as much 
as the oil of three of the ordinary sort, or that of the right 
whale, supposing them all to yield the same quantity in 
number of barrels. The nature or species of the fish was 
easily enough determined by the spouts ; the right whale 
throwing up two high arched jets of water, while the sperm- 
aceti throws but a single, low, bushy one. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


159 


It was not long ere the boats of the two captains came 
abreast of each other, and within speaking distance. A 
stem rivalry was now apparent in every countenance, the 
men pulling might and main, and without even a smile 
among them all. Every face was grave, earnest, and deter- 
mined ; every arm strung to its utmost powers of exertion. 
The men rowed beautifully, being accustomed to the use 
of their long oars in rough water, and in ten minxes they 
were all fully a mile dead to windward of the two schoon- 
ers. 

Few things give a more exalted idea of the courage and 
ingenuity of the human race than to see adventurers set 
forth, in a mere shell, on the troubled waters of the open 
ocean, to contend with and capture an animal of the size 
of the whale. The simple circumstance that the last is in 
its own element, while its assailants are compelled to ap- 
proach it in such light and fragile conveyances, that, to the 
unpracticed eye, it is sufficiently difficult to manage them 
amid the rolling waters, without seeking so powerful an 
enemy to contend with. But little of all this did the crews 
of our four boats now think. They had before them the 
objects, or one of the objects, rather, of their adventure, 
and so long as that was the case, no other view but that of 
prevailing could rise before their eyes. 

“ How is it, Gar’ner ? ” called out the Vineyard master ; 
“ shall it be shares ? or does each schooner whale on her 
own hook ? ” 

This was asked in a friendly way, and apparently with 
great indifference as to the nature of the reply, but with 
profound art. It was Daggett’s wish to establish a sort of 
partnership, which, taken in connection with the good feel- 
ing created by the affair at Beaufort, would be very apt to 
lead on to further and more important association. Luckily 
for Gardiner, an idea crossed his mind, just as he was about 
to reply, which induced the wisest answer. It was the 
thought, that competition would be more likely to cause 
exertion than a partnership, and that the success of all 
would better repay them for their toils and risks, should 
each vessel act exclusively for itself. This is the principle 


160 


THE SEA LIONS. 


that renders the present state of society more healthful and 
advantageous than that which the friends of the different 
systems of associating, that are now so much in vogue, wish 
to substitute in its place. Individuality is an all-important 
feeling in the organization of human beings into commu- 
nities ; and the political economist who does not use it as 
his most powerful auxiliary in advancing civilization, will 
soon se# it turn round in its tracks, and become a dead 
weight ; indulging its self-love, by living with the minimum 
of exertion, instead of pushing his private advantage, with 
the maximum. 

“ I think each vessel had better work for herself and her 
owners,” answered Roswell Gardiner. 

As the schooners were in the trades, there was a regular 
sea running, and one that was neither very high nor much 
broken. Still the boats were lifted on it like egg-shells 
or bubbles, the immense power of the ocean raising the 
largest ships, groaning under their vast weight of ordnance, 
as if they were feathers. In a few minutes, Gardiner and 
Daggett became a little more separated, each looking ea- 
gerly for the spouts, which had not been seen by either 
since quitting his vessel. All this time the two mates came 
steadily on, until the whole of the little fleet of boats was, 
by this time, not less than a marine league distant from the 
schooners. The vessels themselves were working up to 
windward, to keep as near to the boats as possible, making 
short tacks under reduced canvas; a shipkeeper, the cook, 
steward, and one or two other hands, being all who were 
left on board them. 

We shall suppose that most of our readers are sufficiently 
acquainted with the general character of that class of ani- 
mals to which the whale belongs, to know that all of the 
genus breathe the atmospheric air, which is as necessary 
for life to them as it is to man himself. The only differ- 
ence in this respect is, that the whale can go longer with- 
out renewing his aspiration than all purely land-animals, 
though he must come up to breathe at intervals, or die. It 
is the exhaling of the old stock of air, when he brings the 
“ blow-holes,” as seamen call the outlets of his respiratory 


THE SEA LIONS. 


161 


organs, to the surface, that forces the water upward, and 
forms the “ spouts,’’ which usually indicate to the whalers 
the position of their game. The “ spouts ” vary in appear- 
ance, as has been mentioned, owing to the number and 
situation of the orifices by which the exhausted air escapes. 
No sooner is the vitiated air exhaled, than the lungs receive 
a new supply ; and the animal either remains near the sur- 
face, rolling about and sporting amid the waves, or descends 
again, a short distance, in quest of its food. This food, 
also, varies materially in the different species. Th6 right 
whale is supposed to liv#on what may be termed marine 
insects, or the molluscae of the ocean, which it is thought 
he obtains by running in the parts of the sea where they 
most abound ; arresting them by the hairy fibres which 
grow on the laminae of bone that, in a measure, compose 
his jaws, having no teeth. The spermaceti, however, is 
furnished with regular grinders, which he knows very well 
how to use, and with which he often crushes the boats of 
those who come against him. Thus the whalers have but 
one danger to guard against, in assaulting the common ani- 
mal, viz, his flukes, or tail ; while the spermaceti, in addi- 
tion to the last means of defense, possesses those of his 
teeth or jaws. As this latter animal is quite one third 
head, he has no very great dissemblance to the alligator in 
this particular. 

By means of this brief description of the physical forma- 
tion and habits of the animals of which' our adventurers 
were in pursuit, the general reader will be the better able 
to understand that which it is our duty now to record. 
After rowing the distance named, the boats became a little 
jeparated, in their search for the fish. That spouts had 
been seen, there was no doubt ; though, since quitting the 
schooners, no one in the boats had got a further view of 
the fish, — if fish, animals with respiratory organs can be 
termed. A good lookout for spouts had been kept by each 
man at the steering-oars, but entirely without success. Had 
not Roswell and Daggett, previously to leaving their re- 
spective vessels, seen the signs of whales with their own 
eyes, it is probable that they would now have both been 
ll 


162 


THE SEA LIONS. 


disposed to return, calling in their mates. But being cer- 
tain that the creatures they sought were not far distant, 
they continued slowly to separate, each straining his eyes 
in quest of his game, as his boat rose on the summit of the 
rolling and tossing waves. Water in motion was all around 
them ; and the schooners working slowly up against the 
trades, were all that rewarded their vigilant and anxious 
looks. Twenty times did each fancy that he saw the dark 
back, or head, of the object he sought ; but as often did it 
prove to be no more than a lipper of water, rolling up into 
a hummock ere it broke, or melted away again into the 
general mass of the unquiet ocean. When it is remembered 
that the surface of the sea is tossed into a thousand fantas- 
tic outlines, as its waves roll along, it can readily be imag- 
ined how such mistakes could arise. 

At length Gardiner discerned that which his practiced 
eye well knew. It was the flukes, or extremity of the tail 
of an enormous whale, distant from him less than a quarter 
of a mile, and in such a position as to place the animal at 
about the same breadth of water from Daggett. It would 
seem that both of these vigilant officers perceived their 
enemy at the same instant, for each boat started for it, as 
if it had been instinct with life. The pike or the shark 
could not have darted towards its prey with greater promp- 
titude, and scarcely with greater velocity, than these two 
boats. Very soon the whole herd was seen, swimming 
along against the wind, an enormous bull-whale leading, 
while half a dozen calves kept close to the sides of their 
dams, or sported among themselves, much as the offspring 
of land animals delight in their youth and strength. Pres- 
ently a mother rolled lazily over on her side, permitting 
its calf to suck. Others followed this example ; and then 
the leader of the herd ceased his passage to windward, but 
began to circle the spot, as if in complaisance to those con- 
siderate nurses who thus waited on the wants of their young. 
At this interesting moment, the boats came glancing in 
among the herd, 

Had the competition and spirit of rivalry been at a lower 
pont among our adventurers than It; actually was, greater 


THE SEA LIONS. 


163 


caution might have been observed. It is just as dangerous 
to assault a whale that has its young to defend, as to assault 
most other animals. We know that the most delicate women 
become heroines in such straits ; and nature seems to have 
given to the whole sex, whether endowed with reason or 
only with an instinct, the same disposition to die in defense 
of the helpless creatures that so much depend on their care. 
But no one there now thought of the risk he ran, it being 
the Vineyard against Oyster Pond, one Sea Lion against 
the other, and, in many instances, pocket against pocket. 

Roswell, as if disdaining all meaner game, pulled quite 
through the herd, and laid the bows of his boat directly on 
the side of the old bull — a hundred-barrel whale, at the 
very least. No sooner did the enormous creature feel the 
harpoon, than, throwing its flukes upward, it descended 
into the depths of the ocean, with a velocity that caused 
smoke to arise from the chuck through which the line 
passed. Ordinarily, the movement of a whale is not much 
faster than an active man can walk ; and when it runs on 
the surface, its speed seldom exceeds that of a swift vessel 
under full sail ; but when suddenly startled, with the har- 
poon in its blubber, the animal is capable of making a pro- 
digious exertion. When struck, it usually “ sounds,” as it 
is termed, or runs downward, sometimes to the depth of a 
mile ; and it is said that instances have been known in 
which the fish inflicted great injury on itself, by dashing 
its head against rocks. 

In the case before us, after running out three or four 
hundred fathoms of line, the “bull ” to which Gardiner had 
“ fastened,” came up to the surface, “ blowed,” and began to 
mova slowly towards the herd again. No sooner was the 
harpoon thrown, than a change took place in the disposi- 
tion of the crew of the boat, which it may be well to ex- 
plain. The harpoon is a barbed javelin* fastened to a staff 
to give it momentum. The line is attached to this weapon, 
the proper use of which is to “ fasten ” to the fish, though it 
sometimes happens that the animal is killed at the first 
blow. This is when the harpoon has been hurled by a very 
skillful and vigorous harpooner. Usually this weapon pene* 


164 


THE SEA LIONS. 


trates some distance into the blubber in which a whale is 
encased, and when it is drawn back by the plunge of the 
fish, the barbed parts get embedded in the tough integu- 
ments of the hide, together with the blubber, and hold. 
The iron of the harpoon being very soft, the shank bends 
under the strain of the line, leaving the staff close to the 
animal’s body. Owing to this arrangement, the harpoon 
offers less resistance to the water, as the whale passes swiftly 
through it. No sooner did the boat-steerer, or harpooner, 
cast his “ irons,” as whalers term the harpoon, than he 
changed places with Roswell, who left the steering-oar, and 
proceeded forward to wield the lance, the weapon with 
which the victory is finally consummated. The men now 
“ peaked ” their oars, as it is termed ; or they placed the 
handles in cleets made to receive them, leaving the blades 
elevated in the air, so as to be quite clear of the water. 
This was done to get rid of the oars, in readiness for other 
duty, while the instruments were left in the tholes, to be 
resorted to In emergencies. This gives a whaleboat a pe- 
culiar appearance, with its five long oars raised in the air, 
at angles approaching forty-five degrees. In the mean time, 
as the bull approached the herd, or school , 1 as the whalers 
term it, the boat’s crew began to haul in line, the boat- 
steerer coiling it away carefully, in a tub placed in the 
stern-sheets purposely to receive it. Any one can under- 
stand how important it was that this part of the duty should 
be well performed, since bights of line running out of a 
boat, dragged by a whale, would prove so many snares to 
the men’s legs, unless previously disposed of in a place 
proper to let it escape without this risk. For this reason 
it is, that the end of a line is never permitted to run out at 
the bow of a boat at all. It might do some injury in its 
passage, and an axe is always applied near the bows, when 
it is found necessary to cut from a whale. 

It was so unusual a thing to see a fish turn towards the 
spot where he was struck, that Roswell did not know what 
to make of this manoeuvre in his bull. At first he supposed 

1 We suppose this word to be a corruption of the Dutch “ schule which 
we take it, means the same thing. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


165 


the animal meant to make fight, and set upon him with its 
tremendous jaws; but it seemed that caprice or alarm 
directed the movement ; for after coming within a hundred 
yards of the boat, the creature turned and commenced 
sculling away to windward with wide and nervous sweeps 
of its formidable flukes. It is by this process that all the 
fish of this genus force their way through the water, their 
tails being admirably adapted to the purpose. As the men 
had showed the utmost activity in hauling in upon the line, 
by the time the whale went off to windward again they had 
got the boat up within about four hundred feet of him. 

Now commenced a tow, dead to windward, it being 
known that a fish, when struck, seldom runs at first in any 
other direction. The rite at which the whale moved was 
not at the height of his speed, though it exceeded six knots. 
Occasionally, this rate was lessened, and in several instances 
his speed was reduced to less than half of that just men- 
tioned. Whenever one of these lulls occurred, the men 
would haul upon the line, gradually getting nearer and 
nearer to- the fish, until they were within fifty feet of his 
tremendous flukes. Here, a turn was taken with the line, 
and an opportunity to use the lance was waited for. 

Whalers say that a forty-barrel bull of the spermaceti 
sort is much the most dangerous to deal with of all the 
animals of this species. The larger bulls are infinitely the 
most powerful, and drive these half-grown creatures away 
in herds by themselves, that are called “ pads,” a circum- 
stance that probably renders the young bull discontented 
and fierce. The last is not only more active than the larger 
animal, but is much more disposed to make fight, com- 
monly giving his captors the greatest trouble. This may 
be one of the reasons why Roswell Gardiner now found 
himself towing at a reasonable rate, so close upon the flukes 
of a hundred-barrel whale. Still, there was that in the 
movements of this animal that induced our hero to be ex- 
ceedingly wary. He was now two leagues from the schoon- 
ers, and half that distance from the other boats, neither of 
which had as yet fastened to a fish. This latter circum- 
stance was imputed to the difficulty the different officers had 


166 


THE SEA LIONS. 


in making their selections, cows, of the spermaceti breed, 
when they give suck, being commonly' light, and yielding, 
comparatively, very small quantities of head-matter and oil. 
In selecting the bull, Roswell had shown his judgment, the 
male animal commonly returning to its conquerors twice 
the profit that is derived from the female. 

The whale to which Roswell was fast continued sculling 
away to windward for quite two hours, causing the men to 
entirely lose sight of the other boats, and bringing the top- 
sails of the schooners themselves down to the water’s edge. 
Fortunately, it was not yet noon, and there were no imme- 
diate apprehensions from the darkness ; nor did the bull 
appear to be much alarmed, though the boat was towing so 
close in his rear. At first, or before the irons were thrown, 
the utmost care had been taken not to make a noise ; but 
the instant the crew were “ fast,” whispers were changed 
into loud calls, and orders were passed in shouts, rather 
than in verbal commands. The wildest excitement pre- 
vailed among the men, strangely blended with a cool dex- 
terity ; but it was very apparent that a high sporting fever 
was raging among them. Gardiner himself was much the 
coolest man in his own boat, as became his station and 
very responsible duties. 

Stimson, the oldest and the best seaman in the schooner, 
he who had admonished his young commander on the sub- 
ject of the gratitude due to the Deity, acted as the master’s 
boat-steerer, having first performed the duty of harpooner. 
It was to him that Gardiner now addressed the remarks he 
made, after having been fastened to his whale fully two hours. 

“ This fellow is likely to give us a long drag,” said the 
master, as he stood balancing himself on the clumsy cleets 
in the bows of the boat, using his lance as an adept in 
saltation poises his pole on the wire, the water curling 
fairly above the gunwale forward, with the rapid movement 
of the boat ; “ 1 would haul up alongside, and give him 
the lance, did I not distrust them flukes. I believe he 
knows we are here.” 

“ That he does — that does he, Captain Gar’ner. It’s 
always best to be moderate and wait your time, sir. There ’a 


THE SEA LIONS. 


167 


a jerk about that chap’s flukes that I don’t like myself, and 
it ’s best to see what he would be at, before we haul up 
any nearer. Don’t you see, sir, that every minute or two 
he strikes down, instead of sculling off handsomely and with 
a wide sweep, as becomes a whale ? ” 

“ That is just the motion I distrust, Stephen, and I shall 
wait a bit to see what he would be at. I hope those ship- 
keepers will be busy, and work the schooners well up to 
windward before it gets to be dark. Our man is asleep 
half his time, and is apt to let the vessel fall off a point or 
two.” 

“ Mr. Hazard gave him caution to keep a bright look- 
out, sir, and I think he ’ll be apt to — look out, sir ! Look 
out ! ” 

This warning was well-timed ; for just at that instant 
the whale ceased sculling, and lifting its enormous tail high 
in the air, it struck five or six blows on the surface of the 
water, that made a noise which might have been heard half 
a league, besides filling the atmosphere immediately around 
him with spray. As the tail first appeared in the air, line 
was permitted to run out of the boat, increasing the dis- 
tance between its blows and the flukes to quite a hundred 
feet. Nothing could better show the hardy characters of 
the whalers than the picture then presented by Roswell 
Gardiner and his companions. In the midst of the Atlan- 
tic, leagues from their vessel, and no other boat in sight, 
there they sat patiently waiting the moment when the giant 
of the deep should abate in his speed, or in his antics, to 
enable them to approach and complete their capture. Most 
of the men sat with their arms crossed, and bodies half- 
turned, regarding the scene, while the two officers, the 
master and boat-steerer, if the latter could properly be thus 
designated, watched each evolution with a keenness of vig- 
ilance that let nothing like a sign or a symptom escape 
them. 

Such was the state of things, the whale still threshing 
the sea with his flukes, when a cry among his men induced 
Roswell for a moment to look aside. There came Daggett 
fast to a small bull, which was running directly in the 


168 


THE SEA LIONS. 


wind's eye with great speed, dragging the boat after him, 
which was towing astern at a distance of something like 
two hundred fathoms. At first, Roswell thought he should 
be compelled to cut from his whale, so directly towards his 
own boat did the other animal direct his course. But, in- 
timidated, most probably, by the tremendous blows with 
which the larger bull continued to belabor the ocean, the 
smaller animal sheered away in time to avoid a collision, 
though he now began to circle the spot where his dreaded 
monarch lay. This change of course gave rise to a new 
source of apprehension. If the smaller bull should con- 
tinue to encircle the larger, there was great reason to be- 
lieve that the line of Daggett might get entangled with the 
boat of Gardiner, and produce a collision that might prove 
fatal to all there. In order to be ready to meet this danger, 
Roswell ordered his crew to be on the lookout, and to 
have their knives in a state for immediate use. It was not 
known what might have been the consequence of this cir- 
cular movement as respects the two boats ; for, before they 
could come together, Daggett’s line actually passed into 
the mouth of Gardiner’s whale, and drawing up tight into 
the angle of his jaws, set the monster in motion with a 
momentum and power that caused the iron to draw from 
the smaller whale, which by this time had more than half 
encircled the animal. So rapid was the rate of running 
now, that Roswell was obliged to let out line, his whale 
sounding to a prodigious depth. Daggett did the same, 
unwilling to cut as long as he could hold on to his line. 

At the expiration of five minutes the large bull came up 
again for breath, with both lines still fast to him ; the one 
in the regular way, or attached to the harpoon, and the 
other jammed in the jaws of the animal by means of the 
harpoon and staff, which formed a sort of toggle at the 
angle of his enormous mouth. In consequence of feeling 
this unusual tenant, the fish compressed its jaws together, 
thus rendering the fastening so much the more secure. As 
both boats had let run line freely while the whale was 
sounding, they now found themselves near a quarter of a 
mile astern of him, towing along, side by side, and not fifty 


THE SEA LIONS. 


169 


feet asunder. If the spirit of rivalry had been aroused 
among the crew of these two boats before, it was now ex- 
cited to a degree that menaced acts o£» hostility. 

“ You know, of course, Captain Daggett, that this is my 
whale,” said Gardiner. “ I was fast to him regularly, and 
was only waiting for him to become a little quiet to lance 
him, when your whale crossed his course, fouled your line, 
and has got you fast in an unaccountable way, but not ac- 
cording to whaling law.” 

“ I don’t know that. I fastened to a whale, Captain 
Gar’ner, and am fast to a whale now. It must be proved 
that I have no right to the crittur’ before I give him up.” 

Gardiner understood the sort of man with whom he had 
to deal too well to waste words in idle remonstrances. Re- 
solved to maintain his just rights at every hazard, he or- 
dered his men to haul in upon the line, the movement of 
the whale becoming so slow as to admit of this measure. 
Daggett’s crew did the same, and a warm contest existed 
between the two boats, as to which should now first close 
with the fish and kill it. This was not a moment for pru- 
dence and caution. It was “ haul in — haul in, boys,” in 
both boats, without any regard to the danger of approach- 
ing the whale. A very few minutes sufficed to bring the 
parties quite in a line with the flukes, Gardiner’s boat 
coming up on the larboard or left-hand side of the animal, 
where its iron was fast, and Daggett’s on the opposite, its 
line leading out of the jaws of the fish in that direction. 
The two masters stood erect on their respective clumsy 
cleets, each poising his /lance, waiting only to get near 
enough to strike. The men were now at the oars, and 
without pausing for anything, both crews sprung to their 
ashen instruments, and drove the boats headlong upon the 
fish. Daggett, perhaps, was the coolest and most calculat- 
ing at that moment, but Roswell was the most nervous, and 
the boldest. The boat of the last actually hid the side of 
the whale, as its young commander drove his lance through 
the blubber, into the vitals of the fish. At the same in- 
stant Daggett threw his lance with consummate skill, aud 
went to the quick. It was now “ stern all ! ” for life, each 


170 


THE SEA LIONS. 


boat backing off from the danger as fast as his hands could 
urge. The sea was in a foam, the fish going into his 
“ flurry ’’almost as sdon as struck, and both crews were de- 
lighted to see the red of the blood mingling its deep hues 
with the white of the troubled water. Once or twice the 
animal spouted, but it was a fluid dyed in his gore. In ten 
minutes it turned up and was dead. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


171 


CHAPTER XII. 

“ God save you, sir! ” 

“ And you, sir! you are welcome.” 

“ Travel you far on, or are you at the farthest ? ’* 

“ Sir, at the farthest for a week or two.” 

S HAKBPEARE. 

Gardiner and Daggett met, face to face, on the carcass 
of the whale. Each struck his lance into the blubber, 
steadying himself by its handle t and each eyed the other in 
a way that betokened feelings awakened to a keen desire to 
defend his rights. It is a fault of American character, — 
a fruit of the -institutions, beyond a doubt, — that renders 
men unusually indisposed to give up. This stubbornness 
of temperament, that so many mistake for a love of liberty 
and independence, is productive of much good, when the 
parties happen to be right, and of quite as much evil, when 
they happen to be wrong. It is ever the wisest, as, indeed, 
it is the noblest course, to defer to that which is just, with 
a perfect reliance on its being the course pointed out by 
the finger of infallible wisdom and truth. He who does 
this, need feel no concern for his dignity, or for his suc- 
cess ; being certain that it is intended that right shall pre- 
vail in the end, as prevail it will and does. But both our 
shipmasters were too much excited to feel the force of 
these truths ; and there they stood, sternly regarding each 
other, as if it were their purpose to commence a new 
struggle for the possession of the leviathan of the deep. 

“ Captain Daggett,” said Roswell, sharply, “ you are too 
old a whaler not to know whaling law. My irons were first 
in this fish ; I never have been loose from it, since it was 
first struck, and my lance killed it. Under such circum- 
stances, sir, I am surprised that any man, who knows the 
usages among whalers, should have stuck by the creature 
as you have done.” 


172 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ It ’s in my natur’, Gar’ner,” was the answer. “ I stuck 
by you when you was dismasted under Hatteras, and I stick 
by everything that J undertake. This is what I call Vine- 
yard natur’ ; and I ’m not about to discredit my native 
country.” 

“ This is idle talk,” returned Roswell, casting a severe 
glance at the men in the Vineyard boat, among whom a 
common smile arose, as if they highly approved of the 
reply of their own officer. “You very well know that 
Vineyard law cannot settle such a question, but American 
law. Were you man enough to take this whale from me, 
as I trust you are not, on our return home you could be 
and would be made to pay smartly for the act. Uncle 
Sam has a long arm, with which he sometimes reaches 
round the whole earth. Before you proceed any farther 
in this matter, it may be well to remember that.” 

Daggett reflected ; and it is probable that, as he cooled 
off from the excitement created by his late exertions, he 
fully recognized the justice of the other’s remarks, and the 
injustice of his own claims. Still, it seemed to him un- 
American, un-Vijneyard, if the reader please, to “ give up ; ” 
and he clung to his error with as much pertinacity as if he 
bad been right. 

“ If you are fast, I am fast, too. I ’m not so certain of 
your law. When a man puts an iron into a whale, com- 
monly it is his fish, if he can get him, and kill him. But 
there, is a law above all whalers’ law, and that is the law 
of Divine Providence. Providence has fastened us to 
this crittur’, as if on purpose to give us a right in it ; and 
I ’m by no means so sure States’ law won’t uphold that 
doctrine. Then, I lost my own whale by means of this, 
and am entitled to some compensation for such a loss.” 

“You lost your own whale because he led round the 
head of mine, and not only drew his own iron, but came 
nigh causing me to cut. If any one is entitled to damage 
for such an act, it is I, who have been put to extra trouble 
in getting my fish.” 

“ I do believe it was my lance that did the job for the 
fellow ! I darted, and you struck ; in that way I got the 


THE SEA LIONS. 


173 


start of you, and may claim to have made the crittur’ spout 
the first blood. But harkee, Gar’ner — there ’s my hand — - 
we ’ve been friends so far, and I want to hold out friends. 
I will make you a proposal, therefore. Join stocks from 
this moment, and whale, and seal, and do all things else in 
common. When we make a final stowage for the return 
passage, we can make a final division, and each man take 
his share of the common adventure.” 

To do Roswell justice, he saw through the artifice of 
this proposition, the instant it was uttered. It had the 
effect, notwithstanding, a good deal to mollify his feelings, 
since it induced him to believe that Daggett was manoeu- 
vring to get at his great secret, rather than to assail his 
rights. 

“ You are part owner of your schooner, Captain Dag- 
gett,” our hero answered, “ while I have no other interest 
in mine than my lay, as her master. You may have au- 
thority to make such a bargain, but I have none. It is my 
duty to fill the craft as fast and as full as I can, and carry 
her back safely to Deacon Pratt ; but I dare say your 
Vineyard people will let you cruise about the earth at your 
pleasure, trusting to Providence for a profit. I cannot ac- 
cept your offer.” 

“This is answering like a man, Gar’ner, and I like you 
all the better for it. Forty or fifty barrels of ile shan’t 
break friendship between us. I helped you into port at 
Beaufort, and gave up the salvage ; and now I ’ll help tow 
your whale alongside, and see you fairly through this busi- 
ness, too. Perhaps I shall have all the better luck for be- 
ing: a little generous.” 

© © 

There was prudence, as well as art, in this decision of 
Daggett’s. Notwithstanding his ingenious pretensions to 
a claim in the whale, he knew perfectly well that no law 
would sustain it, and that, in addition to the chances of 
being beaten on the spot, which were at least equal, he 
would certainly be beaten in the courts at home, should he 
really attempt to carry out his declared design. Then he 
really deferred to the expectation that his future good for- 
tune might be influenced by his present forbearance. Su- 


174 


THE SEA LIONS. 


perstition forms a material part of a sailor’s nature, if, in- 
deed, it do not that of every man engaged in hazardous 
and uncertain adventures. How far his hopes were jus- 
tified in this last respect, will appear in the contents of a 
communication that Deacon Pratt received from the master 
of his schooner, and to which we will now refer, as the 
clearest and briefest mode of continuing the narrative. 

The Sea Lion left Oyster Pond late in September. It 
was the third day of March, in the succeeding year, that 
Mary was standing at a window, gazing with melancholy 
interest at that point in the adjacent waters where last she 
had seen, nearly six months before, the vessel of Roswell 
disappear behind the woods of the island that bears his 
family name. There had been a long easterly gale, but the 
weather had changed ; the south wind blew softly, and all 
the indications of an early spring were visible. For the 
first time in three months, she had raised the sash of that 
window ; and the air that entered was bland, and savored 
of the approaching season. 

“ I dare say, uncle ” — the deacon was writing near a 
very low wood-fire, which was scarcely more than embers 
— “I dare say, uncle,” said the sweet voice of Mary, which 
was a little tremulous with feeling, “ that the ocean is calm 
enough to-day. It is very silly in us to tremble when there 
is a storm, for those who must now be so many, many 
thousand miles away. What is the distance between the 
antarctic seas and Oyster Pond, I wonder ? ” 

“ You ought to be able to calculate that yourself, gal, or 
what is the use to pay for your schooling ? ” 

“I should not know how to set about it, uncle,” returned 
the gentle Mary, “ though I should be very glad to know.” 

“ How many miles are there in a degree of latitude, 
child? You know that, I believe.” 

“More than sixty-nine, sir.” 

“Well, in what latitude is Oyster Pond? ” 

“ I have heard Roswell say that we were a little higher, 
as he calls it, than forty-one.” 

“ Well, 41 times 69 ” — figuring as he spoke — “ make 
2829 ; say we are 3000 miles from the equator, the nearest 


THE SEA LIONS. 175 

way we can get there. Then, the antarctic circle com- 
mences in 23° 30' south, which, deducted from 90 degrees, 
leave just 66° 30' between the equator and the nearest spot 
within the sea you have mentioned. Now, 66° 30' give 
about 4589 statute miles more, in a straight line, allowing 
only 69 to a degree. The two sums, added together, make 
7589 miles or rather more. But the road is not straight, 
by any means, as shipmasters tell me; and I suppose Gar’- 
ner must have gone, at the very least, 8000 miles to reach 
his latitude, to say nothing of a considerable distance of 
longitude to travel over, to the southward of Cape Horn.” 

“ It is a terrible distance to have a friend from us !” ejac- 
ulated Mary, though in a low, dejected tone. 

“It is a terrible distance for a man to t^ust his property 
away from him, gal ; and I do not sleep a-nights for think- 
ing of it, when I remember where my own schooner may 
be all this time ! ” 

“ Ah, here is Baiting Joe, and with a letter in his hand, 
uncle, I do declare!” 

It might be a secret hope that impelled Mary, for away 
she bounded, like a young fawn, running to meet the old 
fisherman at the door. No sooner did her eyes fall on the 
superscription than the large package was pressed to her 
heart, and she seemed, for an instant, lost in thanksgiving. 
That no one might unnecessarily be a witness of what 
passed between her uncle and herself, Joe was directed to 
the kitchen, where a good meal, a glass of rum and water, 
and the quarter of a dollar that Mary gave him as she 
showed the way, satisfied him with the results of his trouble. 

“ Here it is, uncle,” cried the nearly breathless girl, re- 
entering the “ keeping-room,” and unconsciously holding the 
letter still pressed to her heart, — “A letter — a letter from 
Roswell, in his own precious hand.” 

A flood of tears gave some relief to feelings that had so 
long been pent, and eased a heart that had been compressed 
nearly to breaking. At any other time, and at this une- 
quivocal evidence of the hold the young man had on the 
affections of his niece, Deacon Pratt would have remon- 
strated with her on the folly of refusing to become “ Ros- 


176 


THE SEA LIONS. 


well Gar’ner’s ” wife ; but the sight of the letter drove all 
other thoughts from his head, concentrating his whole be- 
ing in the fate of the schooner. 

“ Look, and see if it has the Antarctic postmark on it, 
Mary,” said the deacon, in a tremulous voice. 

This request was not made so much in ignorance as in 
trepidation. The deacon very well knew that the islands 
the Sea Lion was to visit were uninhabited, and were des- 
titute of post-offices ; but his ideas were confused, and ap- 
prehension rendered him silly. 

“ Uncle ! ” exclaimed the niece, wiping the tears from a 
face that was now rosy with blushes at her own weakness, 
“ surely, Roswell can find no post-office where he is ! 

“ But the letter must have some postmark, child. Bait- 
ing Joe has not brought it himself into the country.” 

“It is postmarked ‘New York,’ sir, and nothing else. 
Yes, here is ‘ Forwarded by Cane, Spriggs, and Button, 
Rio de Janeiro.’ It must have been put into a post-office 
there.” 

“ Rio ! Here is more salvage, gal — more salvage com- 
ing to afflict me ! ” 

“ But you had no salvage to pay, uncle, on the other oc- 
casion ; perhaps there will be none to pay on this. Had I 
not better open the letter at once, and see what has hap- 
pened ?'” 

“ Yes, open it, child,” answered the deacon, in a voice 
so feeble as to be scarcely audible — “ open it at once, as 
you say, and let me know my fate. Anything is better than 
this torment ! ” 

Mary did not wait for a second permission, but instantly 
broke the seal. It might have been the result of education, 
or there may be such a thing as female instinct in these 
matters ; but, certain it is, that the girl turned towards the 
window, as she tore the paper asunder, and slipped the 
letter that bore her own name into a fold of her dress, so 
dexterously, that one far more keen-sighted than her uncle 
would not have detected the act. No sooner was her own 
letter thus secured, than the niece offered the principal 
epistle to her uncle. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


177 


“ Read it yourself, Mary,” said the last, in his querulous 
tones. “ My eyes are so dim, that I could not see to read 
it.” 

“ Rio di Janeiro, Province of Brazil, South America, 
Nov. 14th, 1819,” commenced the niece. 

“ Rio di Janeiro ! ” interrupted the uucle. “ Why tha. 
is round Cape Horn, is n’t it, Mary ? ” 

“ Certainly not, sir. Brazil is on the east side of th» 
Andes, and Rio di Janeiro is it£ capital. The king of Pot 
tugal lives there now and has lived there as long as I ca* 
remember.” 

“ Yes, yes ; I had forgotten. The Brazil Banks, wherm 
our whalers go, are in the Atlantic. But what can have 
taken Gar’ner into Rio, unless it be to spend more money 1 ” 
“ By reading the letter, sir, we shall soon know. I see 
there is something about spermaceti oil here.” 

“ lie ? And spalm ile, do you say ! ” exclaimed the dea- 
con, brightening up at once. “ Read on, Mary, my good 
gal — read the letter as fast as you can — read it at a trot.” 

“ Deacon Israel Pratt — Dear sir,” continued Mary, in 
obedience to this command, “ the two schooners sailed from 
Beaufort, North Carolina, as stated already per mail, in a 
letter written at that port, and which has doubtless come 
to hand. We had fine weather and a tolerable run of it 
until we reached the calm latitudes, where we were de- 
tained by the usual changes for about a week. On the 
18th Oct. the pleasant cry of ‘There she spouta’ was heard 
aboard here, and we found ourselves in the neighborhood 
of whales. Both schooners lowered their boats, and I was 
soon fast to a fine bull, who gave us a long tow before the 
lance was put into him, and he was made to spout blood. 
Captain Daggett set up some claims to this fish, in conse- 
quence of his line’s getting foul of the creature’s jaws, but 
he changed his mind in good season, and clapped on to 
help tow the whale down to the vessel. His irons drew 
from a young bull, and a good deal of dissatisfaction existed 
among the other crew, until, fortunately, the school of 
young bulls came round quite near us, when Captain Dag- 
gett and his people succeeded in securing no less than 
12 


178 


THE SEA LIONS. 


three of the fish, and Mr. Hazard got a very fine one for 

us. 

“ I am happy to say that we had very pleasant weather 
to cut in, and secured every gallon of the oil of both our 
whales, as did Captain Daggett all of his. Our largest bull 
made one hundred and nineteen barrels, of which forty- 
three barrels was head-matter. I never saw better case 
and junk in a whale in my life. The smallest bull turned 
out well too, making fifty-eight barrels, of which twenty- 
one was head. Daggett got one hundred and thirty-three 
barrels from his three fish, a very fair proportion of head, 
though not as large as our own. Having this oil on board, 
we came in here after a pleasant run ; and I have shipped, 
as per invoice inclosed, one hundred and seventy-seven 
barrels of spermaceti oil, viz, sixty-four barrels of head, 
and rest in body-oil, to your order, care of Fish & Grin- 
nell, New York, by the brig Jason, Captain William, who 
will sail for home about the 20th proximo, and to whom I 
trust this letter ” — 

“ Stop, Mary, my dear — this news is overpowering — 
it is almost too good to be true,” interrupted the deacon, 
nearly as much unmanned by this intelligence of his good 
fortune as he had previously been by his apprehensions. 
“ Yes, it does seem too good to be true ; read it again, 
child ; yes, read every syllable of it again ! ” 

Mary complied, delighted enough to hear all she could 
of Roswell's success. 

“ Why, uncle,” said the deeply interested girl, “ all this 
oil is spermaceti ! It is worth a great deal more than so 
much of that which comes of the right whale.” 

“ More ! Ay, nearly as three for one. Hunt me up the 
last Spectator, girl — hunt me up the last Spectator, and 
let me see at once at what they quote spalm.” 

Mary soon found the journal, and handed it to her 
uncle. 

“Yes, here it is, and quoted $1.12$- per gallon, as I 
live ! That ’s nine shillings a gallon, Mary — just calcu- 
late on that bit of paper — thirty times one hundred and 
seventy-seven, Mary ; how much is that, child ? ” 


THE SEA LIONS. 179 

“ 7 make it 5310, uncle — yes, that is right. But what 
are the 30 times for, sir ? ” 

“ Gallons, gal, gallons. Each barrel has 30 gallons in 
it, if not more. There ought to be 32 by rights, but this 
is a cheating age. Now multiply 5310 by 9, and see what 
that comes to.” 

“Just 47,790, sir, as near as I can get it.” 

“ Yes, that ’s the shillings. Now, divide 47,790 by 8, 
my dear. Be actyve, Mary, be actyve.” 

“It leaves 5973, with a remainder of 6, sir. I believe 
I ’m right.” 

“ I dare say you are, child ; yes, I dare say you are. 
This is the dollars. A body may call them $6000, as the 
barrels will a little overrun the 30 gallons. My share of 
this will be two thirds, and that will net the handsome sum 
of, say $4000 ! ” 

The deacon rubbed his hands with delight, and having 
found his voice again, his niece was astonished at hearing 
him utter what he had to say, with a sort of glee that 
sounded in her ears as very unnatural, coming from him. 
So it wfas, however, and she dutifully endeavored not to 
think of it. 

“ Four thousand dollars, Mary, will quite cover the first 
cost of the schooner ; that is without including outfit and 
spare-rigging, of which her master took about twice as 
much as was necessary. He ’s a capital fellow, is that 
young Gar’ner, and will make an excellent husband, as 
I ’ve always told you, child. A little wasteful, perhaps, 
but an excellent youth at the bottom. I dare say he lost 
his spars off Cape Hatteras in trying to outsail that Dag- 
gett ; but I overlook all that now. He ’s a capital youth 
to work upon a whale or a sea-elephant ! There is n’t his 
equal, as I ’ll engage, in all Ameriky, if you ’ll only let him 
know where to find the creatur’s. I knew his character 
before I engaged him ; for no man but a real skinner shall 
ever command a craft of mine.” 

“ Roswell is a good fellow,” answered Mary, with em- 
phasis, the tears filling her eyes as she listened to these 
eulogiums of her uncle on the youth she loved with all of 


180 


THE SEA LIONS. 


a woman’s tenderness, at the very moment she scrupled to 
place her happiness on one whose “ God was not her 
God.” “No one knows him better than I, uncle, and no 
one respects him more. But had I not better read the 
rest of his letter ? there is a good deal more of it.” 

“ Go on, child, go on — but read the part over again 
where he speaks of the quantity of the ile he has shipped 
to Fish & Grinnell.” 

Mary did as requested, when she proceeded to read 
aloud the rest of the communication. 

“ I have been much at a loss how to act in regard to 
Captain Daggett ,” said Roswell, in his letter. “ He stood 
by me so manfully and generously off Cape Hatteras, that 
I did not like to part company in the night, or in a squall, 
which would have seemed ungrateful, as well as wearing a 
sort of runaway look. I am afraid he has some knowledge 
of the existence of our islands, though I doubt whether he 
has their latitude and longitude exactly. Something there 
is of this nature on board the other schooner, her people 
often dropping hints to my officers and men, when they 
have been gamming. I have sometimes fancied Daggett 
sticks so close to us, that he may get the advantage of 
our reckoning to help him to what he wants to find. He 
is no great navigator anywhere, running more by signs 
and currents, in my judgment, than by the use of his in- 
struments. Still, he could find his way to any part of the 
world.” 

“ Stop there, Mary ; stop a little, and let me have time 
to consider. Is n’t it awful, child ? ” 

The niece changed color, and seemed really frightened, 
so catching was the deacon’s distress, though she scarce 
knew what was the matter. 

“What is awful, uncle?” at length she asked, anxious 
to know the worst. 

“ This covetousness in them Vineyarders ! I consider 
it both awful and wicked. I must get the Rev. Mr. 
Whittle to preach against the sin of covetousness ; it does 
gain so much ground in Ameriky ! The whole church 
should lift its voice against it, or it will shortly lift its voice 


THE SEA LIONS. 


181 


against the church. To think of them Daggetts’ fitting 
out a schooner to follow my craft about the ’arth in this 
unheard-of manner ; just as if she was a pilot-boat, and 
young Gar’ner a pilot ! I do hope the fellows will make 
a wrack of it, among the ice of the antarctic seas ! Tha 4 - 
would be a fit punishment for their impudence and covet- 
ousuess.” 

“ I suppose, sir, they think that they have the same right 
to sail on the ocean that others have. Seals and whales 
are the gifts of God, and one person has no more right to 
them than another.” 

“ You forget, Mary, that one man may have a secret that 
another does n’t know. In that case he ought not to go 
prying about like an old woman in a village neighbor- 
hood. Read on, child, read on, and let me know the worst 
at once.” 

“ I shall sail to-morrow, having finished all my business 
here, and hope to be off Cape Horn in twenty days, if not 
sooner. In what manner I am to get rid of Daggett, I 
do not yet know. He outsails me a little on all tacks, un- 
less it be in very heavy weather, when I have a trifling 
advantage over him. It will be in my power to quit him 
any dark night ; but if I let him go ahead, and he should 
really have any right notions about the position of the isl- 
ands, he might get there first, and make havoc among the 
seals.” 

“ Awful, awful ! ” interrupted the deacon, again ; “ that 
would be the worst of all ! I won’t allow it ; I forbid it 
— it shall not be.” 

“ Alas ! uncle, poor Roswell is too far from us, now, to 
hear these words. No doubt the matter is long since de- 
cided, and he has acted according to the best of his judg- 
ment.” 

“ It is terrible to have one’s property so far away ! 
Government ought to have steamboats, or packets of 
some sort, running between New York and Cape Horn, 
to carry orders back and forth. But we shall never 
have things right, Mary, so long as the democrats are up- 
permost.” 


182 


THE SEA LIONS. 


By this remark, which savors very strongly of a species 
of censure that is much in fashion in the coteries of that 
Great Emporium, which it is the taste and pleasure of its 
people to term a commercial emporium, especially among 
elderly ladies, the reader will at once perceive that the 
deacon was a federalist, which was somewhat of a novelty 
in Suffolk, thirty years since. Had he lived down to our 
own times, the old man would probably have made all the 
gyrations in politics that have distinguished the school to 
which he would have belonged, and, without his own 
knowledge, most probably, would have been as near an 
example of perpetual motion as the world will ever see, 
through his devotion to what are now called “ Whig Prin- 
eiples.” We are no great politician, but time has given 
us the means of comparing ; and we often smile when we 
hear the disciples of Hamilton, and of Adams, and of all 
that high-toned school, declaiming against the use of the 
veto, and talking of the “ one man power,” and of Con- 
gress’ leading the government ! The deacon was very apt 
to throw the opprobrium of even a bad season on the ad- 
ministration, and the reader has seen what he thought of 
the subject of running packets between New York and 
Cape Horn. 

“ There ought to be a large navy, Mary, a monstrous 
navy, so that the vessels might be kept carrying letters 
about, and serving the public. But we shall never have 
things right, until Rufus King, or some man like him, 
gets in. If Gar’ner lets that Daggett get the start of 
him, he never need come home again. The islands are as 
much mine as if I had bought them ; and I ’m not sure 
an action would n’t lie for seals taken on them without 
my consent. Yes, yes; we want a monstrous navy, to 
convoy sealers, and carry letters about, and keep soim 
folks at home, while it lets other folks go about their law- 
ful business.” 

“ Of what islands are you speaking, uncle ? Surely the 
Fealing islands, where Roswell has gone, are public and 
uninhabited, and no one has a better right there than an- 
other ! ” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


183 


The deacon perceived that he had gone too far, in his 
tribulation, and began to have a faint notion that he was 
making a fool of himself. He asked his niece, in a very 
faint voice, therefore, to hand him the letter, the remainder 
of which he would endeavor to read himself. Although 
every word that Roswell Gardiner wrote was very precious 
to Mary, the gentle girl had a still unopened epistle to her- 
self to peruse, and glad enough was she to make the ex- 
change. Handing the deacon his letter, therefore, she 
withdrew at once to her private room, in order to read her 
own. 

“ Dearest Mary,” said Roswell Gardiner, in this epistle, 
“ your uncle will tell you what has brought us into this 
port, and all things connected with the schooner. I have 
sent home more than $4000 worth of oil, and I hope my 
owner will forgive the accident off Currituck, on account 
of this run of good luck. In my opinion, we shall yet 
make a voyage, and that part of my fortune will be secure. 
Would that I could feel as sure of finding you more dis- 
posed to be kind to me, on my return ! I read in your 
Bible every day, Mary, and I often pray to God to en- 
lighten my mind, if my views have been wrong. As yet, I 
cannot flatter myself with any change, for my old opinions 
appear rather to be more firmly rooted than they were be- 
fore I sailed.” Here poor Mary heaved a heavy sigh, and 
wiped the tears from her eyes. She was pained to a de- 
gree she could hardly believe possible, though she did full 
credit to Roswell’s frankness. Like all devout persons, 
her faith in the efficacy of sacred writ was strong ; and she 
so much the more lamented her suitor’s continued blindness, 
because it remained after light had shone upon it. “ Still, 
Mary,” the letter added, “ as I have every human induce- 
ment to endeavor to be right, I shall not throw aside the 
book, by any means. In that I fully believe ; our differ- 
ence being in what the volume teaches. Pray for me, 
sweetest girl — but I know you do, and will continue to 
do, as long as I am absent.” 

Yes, indeed, Roswell,” murmured Mary — “as long as 
you and I live ! ” 


184 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Next to this one great concern of my life, comes that 
which this man Daggett gives me,” — the letter went on to 
say. “ I hardly know what to do under all the circum- 
stances. Keep in his company much longer I cannot, 
without violating my duty to the deacon. Yet it rs not 
easy, in any sense, to get rid of him. He has stood by me 
so manfully on all occasions, and seems so much disposec 
to make good-fellowship of the voyage, that, did it depern 
on myself only, I should at once make a bargain with hm 
to seal in company, and to divide the spoils. But this * 
now impossible, and I inust quit him in some way or otli*> . 
He outsails me in most weathers, and it is a thing ea'jcr 
said than done. What will make it more difficult is» tne 
growing shortness of the nights. The days lengthen last 
now, and as we go south they will become so much j<*nger, 
that, by the time when it will be indispensable to separate, 
it will be nearly all day. The thing must be aoue, how- 
ever, and I trust to luck to be able to do it as it ought to 
be effected. 

“ And now, dearest, dearest Mary ” — But why should 
we lift the veil from the feelings of this young man, who 
concluded his letter by pouring out his whole heart in a 
few sincere and manly sentences. Mary wept over them 
most of that day, perusing and repei using them, until her 
eyes would scarce perform their proper office. 

A few days later the deacon was made a very happy man 
by the receipt of a letter from Fish <5e Grin n ell, notifying 
him of the arrival of his oil, acompamed by a most grati- 
fying account of the state of the market, and asking for 
instructions. The oil was disposed of, and the deacon 
pocketed his portion of the proceeds as soon as possible ; 
eagerly looking for a new and prontable investment for the 
avails. Great was the reputation Boswell Gardiner made 
by this capture of the two spermaceti whales, and by send- 
ing the proceeds to so good a market. In commerce, as in 
war, success is all in all, thougn in both success is nearly 
as often the result of unforeseen circumstances as of calcu- 
lations and wisdom. It is true there are a sort of trade, 
and a sort of war, in which prudence and care may effect 


THE SEA LIONS. 


185 


a great deal, yet are both often outstripped by the random 
exertions and adventures of those who calculate almost as 
wildly as they act. Audacity, as the French term it, is a 
great quality in war, and often achieves more than the 
most calculated wisdom — nay, it becomes wisdom in that 
sort of struggle ; and we are far from being sure that au- 
dacity is not sometimes as potent in trade. At all events, 
it was esteemed a bold, as well as a prosperous exploit, for 
a little schooner like the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond, to take 
a hundred-barrel whale, and to send home its “ ile,” as the 
deacon always pronounced the word, in common with most 
others in old Suffolk. 

Long and anxious months, with one exception, succeeded 
this bright spot of sunshine in Mary Pratt’s solicitude in 
behalf of the absent Roswell. She knew there was but 
little chance of hearing from him again until he returned 
north. The exception was a short letter that the deacon 
received, dated two weeks later than that written from Rio, 
in latitude forty -one, or just as far south of the equator as 
Oyster Pond was north of it, and nearly fourteen hundred 
miles to the southward of Rio. This letter was written in 
great haste, to send home by a Pacific trader who was ac- 
cidentally met nearer the coast than was usual for such 
vessels to be. It stated that all was well ; that the schooner 
of Daggett was still iii company ; and that Gardiner in- 
tended to get “ shut ” of her, as the deacon expressed it, 
on the very first occasion. 

After the receipt of this letter, the third written by Ros- 
well Gardiner since he left home, a long and blank interval 
of silence succeeded. Then it was that months passed 
away in an anxious and dark uncertainty. Spring followed 
winter, summer succeeded to spring, and autumn came to 
reap the fruits of all the previous seasons, without bringing 
any further tidings from the adventurers. Then wiuter 
made its second appearance since the Sea Lion had sailed, 
filling the minds of the mariners’ friends with sad fore- 
bodings as they listened to the moanings of the gales that 
accompanied that bleak and stormy quarter of the year. 


186 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Deep and painful were the anticipations of the deacon, in 
whom failing health, and a near approach to the “ last of 
earth,” came to increase the gloom. As for Mary, youth 
and health sustained her ; but her very soul was heavy, as 
she pondered on so long and uncertain an absence. 


THE SEA LIONS 


187 


CHAPTER XIII. 

Safely in harbor 

Is the king’s ship ; in the deep nook, where once 
Thou calledst me up at midnight to fetch dew 
From the still vexed Bermoothes, there she ’s hid. 

Tempest. 

The letter of Roswell Gardiner last received, bore the 
date of December 10th, 1819, or just a fortnight after he 
had sailed from Rio de Janeiro. We shall next present 
the schooner of Deacon Pratt to the reader on the 18th of 
that month, or three weeks and one day after she had 
sailed from the capital of Brazil. Early in the morning of 
the day last mentioned, the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond was 
visible, standing to the northward, with the wind light but 
freshening from the westward, and in smooth water. Land 
was not only in sight, but was quite near, less than a league 
distant. Towards this land the head of the schooner had 
been laid, and she was approaching it at the rate of some 
four or five knots. The land was broken, high, of a most 
sterile aspect where it was actually to be seen, and nearly 
all 6overed with a light but melting snow, though the sea- 
son was advanced to the middle of the first month in sum- 
mer. The weather was not very cold, however, and there 
was a feeling about it that promised it would become still 
milder. The aspect of the neighboring land, so barren, 
rugged and inhospitable, chilled the feelings, and gave to 
the scene a sombre hue which the weather itself might not 
have imparted. Directly ahead of the schooner rose a sort 
of pyramid of broken rocks, which, occupying a small 
island, stood isolated in a measure, and some distance in 
advance of other and equally ragged ranges of mountains, 
which belonged also to islands detached from the main- 
land thousands of years before, under some violent convul- 
sions of nature. 


188 


THE SEA LIONS. 


It was quite apparent that all on board the schooner re* 
garded that ragged pyramid with lively interest. Most of 
the crew was collected on the forecastle, including the 
officers, and all eyes were fastened on the ragged pyramid 
which they were diagonally approaching. The principal 
spokesman was Stimson, the oldest mariner on board, and 
one who had oftener visited those seas than any other of 
the crew. 

“You know the spot, do you, Stephen?” demanded 
Roswell Gardiner, with interest. 

“ Yes, sir, there ’s no mistake. That ’s the Horn. Eleven 
times have I doubled it, and this is the third time that I ’ve 
been so close in as to get a fair sight of it. Once I went 
inside, as I *ve told you, sir.” 

“ I have doubled it six times myself,” said Gardiner, 
“ but never saw it before. Most navigators give it a wide 
berth. ’T is said to be the stormiest spot on the known 
earth ! ” 

“ That ’s a mistake, you may depend on ’t, sir. The sow- 
westers blow great guns hereabouts, is is true enough ; 
and when they do, sich a sea comes tumbling in on that 
rock as man never seed anywhere else, perhaps; but, on 
the whull, I ’d rather be close in here, than two hundred 
miles farther to the southward. With the wind at sow- 
west, and heavy, a better slant might be made from the 
southern position ; but here I know where I am, and I ’d 
go in and anchor, and wait for the gale to blow itself out.” 

“ Talking of seas, Captain Gar’ner,” observed Hazard, 
“ don’t you think, sir, we begin to feel the swell of the 
Pacific. Smooth as the surface of the water is, here is a 
groundswell rolling in that must be twelve or fifteen feet 
in height.” 

“ There ’s no doubt of that. We have felt the swell of 
the Pacific these two hours ; no man can mistake that. 
The Atlantic has no such waves. This is an ocean in re- 
ality, and this is its stormiest part. The wind freshens and 
hauls, and I m afraid we are about to be caught close in 
here, with a regular sow-west gale.” 

“ Let it come, sir, let it come,” put in Stimson, again ; 


THE SEA LIONS. 


189 


“ if it does, we ’ve only to run in and anchor. I can stand 
pilot, and I promise to carry the schooner where twenty 
sow-westers will do her no harm. What I ’ve seen done 
once, I know can be done again. The time will come when 
the Horn will be a reg’lar harbor.” 

Roswell left the forecastle, and walked aft, pondering on 
what had just been said. His situation was delicate, and 
demanded decision, as well as prudence. The manner in 
which Daggett had stuck by him, ever since the two vessels 
took their departure from Blok Island, is known to the 
reader. The Sea Lions had sailed from Rio in company, 
and they had actually made Staten Land together, the day 
preceding that on which we now bring the Oyster Pond 
craft once more upon the scene, and had closed so near as 
to admit of a conversation between the two masters. It 
would seem that Daggett was exceedingly averse to passing 
though the Strait of Le Maire. An uncle of his had been 
wrecked there, and had reported the passage as the most 
dangerous one he had ever encountered. It has its diffi- 
culties, no doubt, in certain states of the wind and tide ; 
but Roswell had received good accounts of the place from 
Stimson, who had been through several times. The wind 
was rather scant to go through, and the weather threatened 
to be thick. As Daggett urged his reasons for keeping off 
and passing outside of Staten Land, a circuit of considera- 
ble extent, besides bringing a vessel far to leeward with the 
prevalent winds of that region, which usually blow from 
northwest round to southwest, Roswell was reflecting on 
the opportunity the circumstances afforded of giving his 
consort the slip. After discussing the matter for some 
time, he desired Daggett to lead on and he would follow. 
This was done, though neither schooner was kept off until 
Roswell got a good view of Cape St. Diego, on Terra del 
Fuego, thereby enabling him to judge of the positions of 
the principal landmarks. Without committing himself by 
any promise, therefore, he told Daggett to lead on, and for 
some time he followed, the course being one that did nofc 
take him much out of the way. The weather was misty, 
and at times the wind blew in squalls. The last increased 


190 


THE SEA LIONS. 


as the schooners drew nearer to Staten Land. Daggett, 
being about half a mile ahead, felt the full power of one 
particular squall that came out of the ravines with greater 
force than common, and he kept away to increase his dis- 
tance from the land. At the same time, the mist shut in 
the vessels from each other. It was also past sunset, and 
a dark and dreary night was approaching. This latter fact 
had been one of Daggett’s arguments for going outside. 
Profiting by all these circumstances, Roswell tacked, and 
stood over towards Terra del Fuego. He knew from the 
smoothness of the water that an ebb-tide was running, and 
trusted to its force to carry him through the Straits. He 
saw no more of the Sea Lion of the Vineyard. She con- 
tinued shut in by the mist until night closed around both 
vessels. When he got about mid-channel, Roswell tacked 
again. By this time the current had sucked him fairly 
into the passage, and no sooner did he go about than his 
movement to the southward was very rapid. The squalls 
gave some trouble, but, on the whole, he did very well. 
Next morning he was off Cape Horn, as described. By 
this expression, it is generally understood that a vessel is 
somewhere near the longitude of that world renowned cape, 
but net necessarily in sight of it. Few navigators actually 
see the extremity of the American continent, though they 
double the cape, it being usually deemed the safest to pass 
well to the southward. Such was Daggett’s position ; who, 
in consequence of having gone outside of Staten Land, was 
now necessarily a long distance to leeward, and who could 
not hope to beat up abreast of the Hermits, even did the 
wind and sea favor him, in less than twenty-four hours. 
A great advantage was obtained by coming through the 
Strait of Le Maire, and Roswell felt very certain that he 
should not see his late consort again that day, even did he 
heave-to for him. But our hero had no idea of doing any- 
thing of the sort. Having shaken off his leech, he had no 
wish to suffer it to fasten to him again. It was solely with 
the intention of making sure of this object that he thought 
of making a harbor. 

In order that the reader may better understar d those in* 


THE SEA LIONS. 


191 

cidents of our narrative which we are about to relate, it 
may be well to say a word of the geographical features of 
the region to which he has been transported, in fiction, if 
not in fact. At the southern extremity of the American 
continent is a cluster of islands, which are dark, sterile, 
rocky, and most of the year covered with snow. Ever- 
greens relieve the aspect of sterility, in places that are a 
little sheltered, and there is a meagre vegetation in spots 
that serve to sustain animal life. The first strait which 
separates this cluster of islands from the main, is that of 
Magellan, through which vessels occasionally pass, in pref- 
erence to going farther south. Then comes Terra del 
Fuego, which is much the largest of all the islands. To 
the southward of Terra del Fuego lies a cluster of many 
small islands, which bear different names ; though the group 
farthest south of all, and which it is usual to consider as 
the southern termination of our noble continent, but which 
is not on a continent at all, is known by the appropriate 
appellation of the Hermits. If solitude, and desolation, and 
want, and a contemplation of some of the sublimest features 
of this earth, can render a spot fit for a hermitage, these 
islands are very judiciously named. The one that is farthest 
south contains the cape itself, which is marked by the rag- 
ged pyramid of rock already mentioned ; placed there by 
nature, a never-tiring sentinel of the war of the elements. 
Behind this cluster of the Hermits it was that Stimson ad- 
vised his officer to take refuge against the approaching 
gale, of which the signs were now becoming obvious and 
certain. Roswell’s motive, however, for listening to such 
advice, was less to find a shelter for his schooner than to 
get rid of Daggett. For the gale he cared but little, since 
he was a long way from the ice, and could stretch off the 
land to the southward into a waste of waters that seems in- 
terminable. There are islands to the southward of Cape 
Horn, and a good many of them too, though none very 
near. It is now known, also, by means of the toils and 
courage of various seamen, including those of the perse- 
vering and laborious Wilkes, the most industrious and the 
least rewarded of all the navigators who have ever worked 


192 


THE SEA LIONS. 


for the human race in this dangerous and exhausting occu 
pation, that a continent is there also ; but at the period of 
which we are writing, the existence of the Shetlands and 
Palmer’s Land was the extent of the later discoveries in 
that part of the ocean. After pacing the quarter-deck a 
few minutes, when he quitted the forecastle as mentioned, 
Roswell Gardiner again went forward among the men. 

“ You are quite sure that this high peak is the Horn, 
Stimson ? ” he observed, inquiringly. 

“ Sartain of it, sir. There ’s no mistaking sich a place, 
which, once seen, is never forgotten.” 

“ It agrees with the charts and our reckoning, and I may 
say it agrees with our eyes also. Here is the Pacific 
Ocean, plain enough, Mr. Hazard.” 

“ So I think, sir. We are at the end of Ameriky, if it 
has an end anywhere. This heavy long swell is an old 
acquaintance, though I never was in close enough to see 
the land, hereabouts, before.” 

“ It is fortunate we have one trusty hand on board who 
can stand pilot. Stimson, I intend to go in and anchor, 
and I shall trust to you to carry me into a snug berth.” 

“ I ’ll do it, Captain Gar’iier, if the weather will permit 
it,” returned the seaman, with an unpretending sort of 
confidence that spoke well for his ability. 

Preparations were now commenced in earnest, to come 
to. It was time that some steady course should be adopted, 
as the w T ind was getting up, and the schooner was rapidly 
approaching the land. In half an hour the Sea Lion was 
bending to a little gale, with her canvas reduced to close- 
reefed mainsail and foresail, and the bonnet off her jib. 
The sea was fast getting up, though it came in long, and 
mountain-like. Roswell dreaded the mist. Could he pass 
through the narrow channels that Stimson had describe*! to 
him, with a clear sky, one half of his causes of anxiety 
would be removed. But the wind was not a clear one, and 
he felt that no time was to be lost. 

It required great nerve to approach a coast like that of 
Cape Horn in such weather. As the schooner got nearer 
to the real cape, the sight of the seas tumbling in and 


THE SEA LIONS. 


193 


breaking on its ragged rock, and the hollow roaring sound 
they made, actually became terrific. To add to the awe 
inspired in the breast of even the most callous- minded man 
on board, came a doubt whether the schooner could weather 
a certain point of rock, the western extremity of the isl- 
and, after she had got so far into a bight as to render 
wearing questionable, if not impossible. Every one now 
looked grave and anxious. Should the schooner go ashore 
in such a place, a single minute would suffice to break her 
to pieces, and not a soul could expect to be saved. Ros- 
well was exceedingly anxious, though he remained cool. 

“ The tides and eddies about these rocks, and in so high 
a latitude, sweep a vessel like chips,” he said to his chief 
mate. “We have been set in here by an eddy, and a ter- 
rible place it is.” 

“ All depends on our gears holding on, sir,” was the an- 
swer, “ with a little on Providence. Just watch the point 
ahead, Captain Gar’ner ; though we are not actually to 
leeward of it, see with what a drift we have drawn upon 
it ! The manner in which these seas roll in from the sow- 
west is terrific ! $0 craft can go to windward against 

them.” 

This remark 6f Hazard’s was very just. The seas that 
came down upon the cape resembled a rolling prairie in 
their outline. A single wave would extend a quarter of a 
mile from trough to trough, and as it passed beneath the 
schooner, lifting her high in ther air, it really seemed as if 
the glancing water would sweep her away in its force. 
But human art had found the means to counteract even 
this imposing display of the power of nature. The little 
schooner rode over the billows like a duck, and when she 
sank between two of them, it was merely to rise again on 
a new summit, and breast the gale gallantly. It was the 
current that menaced the greatest danger ; for that, unseeD 
except in its fruits, was clearly setting the little craft zo 
leeward, and bodily toward the rocks. By this time our 
adventurers were so near the land that they almost gave 
up hope itself. Cape Hatteras and its much-talked-oi 
dangers, seemed a place of refuge compared to that in 
13 


194 


THE SEA LIONS. 


which our navigators now found themselves. Could the 
deepest bellowings of ten thousand bulls be united in a 
common roar, the noise would not have equaled that of the 
hollow sound which issued from a sea as it went into some 
cavern of the locks. Then, the spray filled the air like 
driving rain, and there were minutes when the cape, 
though so frightfully near, was hid from view by the va- 
por. 

At this precise moment, the Sea Lion was less than a 
quarter of a mile to windward of the point she was strug- 
gling to weather, and towards which she was driving under 
a treble impetus ; that of the wind, acting ou her sails, and 
pressing her ahead at the rate of fully five knots, for the 
craft was kept a rap full ; that of the eddy, or current, 
and that of the rolling waters. No man spoke, for each 
person felt that the crisis was one in which silence was a 
sort of homage to the Deity. Some prayed privately, and 
all gazed on the low rocky point that it was indispensable 
to pass, to avoid destruction. There was one favorable 
circumstance ; the water was known to be deep quite close 
to the iron-bound coast, and it was seffiom that any danger 
existed that it was not visible to the eye. This Roswell 
knew from Stimson’s accounts, as well as from those of 
other mariners, and he saw that the fact was of the last 
importance to him. Should he be able to weather the 
point ahead, that which terminated at the mouth of the 
passage that led within thq Hermits, it was now certain it 
could be done only by going fearfully near the rocks. 

Roswell Gardiner took his station between the knight- 
heads, beckoning to Stimson to come near him. At the 
frame time, Hazard himself went to the helm. 

“ Do you remember this place ? ” asked the young mas- 
ter of the old seaman. 

“ This is the spot, sir ; and if we can round the rocky 
point ahead, I will take you to a safe anchorage. Our 
drift is awful, or we are in an eddy tide here, sir ! ” 

“It is the eddy,” answered Roswell, calmly, “though 
our drift is not trifling. This is getting frightfully near to 
that point ! ” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


195 

u Hold on, sir — it ’s our only chance ; hold on, and we 
may rub and go.” 

“ If we rub, we are lost ; that is certain enough. Should 
we get by this first point, there is another, a short distance 
Deyond it, which must certainly fetch us up, I fear. See 
— it opens more, as we draw ahead.” 

Stimson saw the new danger, and fully appreciated it. 
did not speak, however ; for, to own the truth, he now 
abandoned all hope, and, being a piously inclined person, 
he was privately addressing himself to God. Every man 
on board was fully aware of the character of this new 
danger and all seemed to forget that of the nearest point 
of rock, towards which they were now wading with portent- 
ous speed. That point might be passed ; there was a 
little hope there ; but as to the point a quarter of a mile 
beyond, with the leeward set of the schooner, the most 
ignorant hand on board saw how unlikely it was that they 
should get by it. 

An imposing silence prevailed in the schooner, as she 
came abreast of the first rock. It was about fifty fathoms 
under the lee bow, and, as to that spot, all depended on the 
distance outward that the dangers thrust themselves. This 
it was impossible to see amid the chaos of waters produced 
by the collision between the waves and the land. Roswell 
fastened his eyes on objects ahead, to note the rate of his 
leeward set, and, with a seaman’s quickness he noted the 
first change. 

“ She feels the under-tow, Stephen,” he said, in a voice 
so compressed as to seem to come out of the depths of his 
chest, “ and is breasted up to windward ! ” 

“ What means that sudden luff, sir ? Mr. Hazard must 
keep a good full, or we shall have no chance.” 

Gardiner looked aft, and saw that the mate was bearing 
the helm well up, as if he met with much resistance. The 
truth then flashed upon him, and he shouted out : — 

“ All ’s well, boys ! God be praised, we have caught 
the ebb-tide, under our lee-bow ! ” 

These few words explained the reason of the change. 
Instead of setting to leeward, the schooner was now meet* 


196 


THE SEA LIONS. 


mg a powerful tide of some four or five knots, which hawsed 
her up to windward with irresistible force. As if conscious 
of the danger she was in, the tight little craft receded from 
the rocks as she shot ahead, and rounded that second point, 
which, a minute before, had appeared to be placed there 
purposely to destroy her. It was handsomely doubled, at 
the safe distance of a hundred fathoms. Roswell believed 
he might now beat his schooner off the land far enough to 
double the cape altogether, could he but keep her in that 
current. It doubtless expended itself, however, a short 
distance in the offing, as its waters diffused themselves on 
the breast of the ocean ; and It was this diffusion of the 
element that produced the eddy which had proved so nearly 
fatal. 

In ten minutes after striking the tide, the schooner 
opened the passage fairly, and was kept away to enter it. 
Notwithstanding it blew so heavily, the rate of sailing, by 
the land, did not exceed five knots. This was owing tc 
the great strength of the tide, which sometimes rises anc 
falls thirty feet, in high latitudes and narrow waters. 
Stimson now showed he was a man to be relied on. Con- 
ning the craft intelligently, he took her in behind the 
island on which the cape stands, luffed her up into a tiny 
cove, and made a cast of the lead. There were fifty 
fathoms of water, with a bottom of mud. With the cer- 
tainty that there was enough of the element to keep him 
clear of the ground at low water, and that his anchors 
would hold, Roswell made a flying moor, and veered out 
enough cable to render his vessel secure. 

Here, then, was the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond, that craft 
which the reader had seen lying at Deacon Pratt’s wharf, 
only three short months before, safely anchored in a nook 
of the rocks behind Cape Horn. No navigator but a 
sealer would have dreamed of carrying his vessel into such 
a place, but it is a part of their calling to poke about in 
channels and passages where no one else has ever been. 
It was in this way that Stimson had learned to know where 
to find his present anchorage. The berth of the schooner 
was perfectly snug, and entirely land-locked. The tremen- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


107 


Jous swell that was rolling in on the outside, caused the 
waters to rise and fall a little within the passage, hut there 
was no strain upon the cables in consequence. Neither 
did the rapid tides affect the craft, which lay 'in an eddy 
that merely kept her steady. The gale came howling over 
the Hermits, but was so much broken by the rocks as to 
do little more than whistle through the cordage and spars 
aloft. 

Three days, and as many nights, did the gale from the- 
southwest continue. The fourth day there was a change, 
the wind coming from the eastward. Roswell would now 
have gone out, had it not been for the apprehension of 
falling in with Daggett again. Having at length gotten 
rid of that pertinacious companion, it would have been an 
act of great weakness to throw himself blindly in his way 
once more. It was possible that Daggett might not sup- 
pose he had been left intentionally, in which case he would 
be very apt to look for his lost consort in the vicinity of 
the cape. As for the gale, it might, or it might not, have 
blown him to leeward. A good deal would depend on the 
currents, and his distance to the southward. Near the 
land, Gardiner believed the currents favored a vessel doub- 
ling it, going west ; and if Daggett was also aware of this 
fact, it might induce him to keep as near the spot as pos- 
sible. 

Time was very precious to our sealers, the season being 
so short in the high latitudes. Still, they were a little in 
advance of their calculatipns, having got off the Horn fully 
ten days sooner than they had hoped to be there. Nearly 
the whole summer was before them, and there was the 
possibility of their even being too soon for the loosening 
of the ice farther south. The wind was the strongest in- 
ducement to go out, for the point to which our adventurers 
were bound lay a considerable distance to the westward, 
and fair breezes were not to be neglected. Under all the 
circumstances, however, it was decided to remain within 
the passage one day longer, and this so much the more, 
because Hazard had discovered some signs of sea-elephants 
frequenting an island at no great distance. The boats 


198 


THE SEA LIONS. 


were lowered accordingly, and the mate went in one direc* 
tion, while the master pulled up to the rocks, and landed 
on the Hermit, or the island which should bear that name, 
par excellence, being that in which the group terminates. 

Taking Stimson with him, to carry a glass, and armed 
with an old lance as a pike-pole, to aid his efforts, Roswell 
Gardiner now commenced the ascent of the pyramid al- 
ready mentioned. It was ragged, and offered a thousand 
obstacles, but none that vigor and resolution could not over- 
come. After a few minutes of violent exertion, and by 
helping each other in difficult places, both Roswell and 
Stimson succeeded in placing themselves on the summit of 
the elevation, which was an irregular peak. The height 
was considerable, and gave an extended view of the adja- 
cent islands, as well as of the gloomy and menacing ocean 
to the southward. The earth, probably, does not contain 
a more remarkable sentinel than this pyramid on which 
our hero had now taken his station. There it stood, act- 
ually the Ultima Thule of this vast continent, or, what was 
much the same, so closely united to it as to seem a part of 
our own moiety of the globe, looking out on the broad ex- 
panse of waters. The eye saw, to the right, the Pacific ; 
in front was the Southern, or Antarctic Ocean ; and to the 
left was the great Atlantic. For several minutes both Ros- 
well and Stephen sat mute, gazing on this grand spectacle. 
By turning their faces north, they beheld the high lands of 
Terra del Fuego, of which many of the highest peaks were 
covered with snow. The pyramid on which they were, 
however, was no longer white with the congealed rain, but 
stood, stern and imposing, in its native brown. The out- 
lines of all the rocks, and the shores of the different islands, 
had an appearance of volcanic origin, though the rocks 
themselves told a somewhat different story. The last was 
principally of trap formation. Cape pigeons, gulls, petrels, 
and albatross were wheeling about in the air, while the 
rollers that still came in on this noble sea-wall were really 
terrific. Distant thunder wants the hollow, bellowing 
sound that these waves made when brought in contact with 
the shores. Roswell fancied that it was like a groan of 


THE SEA LIONS. 


199 


the mighty Pacific, at finding its progress suddenly checked. 
The spray continued to fly, and, much of the time, the air 
below his elevated seat was filled with vapor. 

As soon as our young master had taken in the grander 
features of this magnificent view, his eyes sought the Sea 
Lion of Martha’s Vineyard. There she was, sure enough, 
at a distance of only a couple of leagues, and apparently 
standing directly for the Cape. Could it be possible that 
Daggett suspected his manoeuvre, and was coming in search 
of him, at the precise spot in which he had taken shelter ? 
As respects the vessel, there was no question as to her char- 
acter. From the elevation at which he was placed, Ros- 
well, aided by the glass, had no difficulty in making her 
out, and in recognizing her rig, form, and character. Stim- 
son also examined her, and knew her to be the schooner. 
On that vast and desolate sea, she resembled a speck, but 
the art of man had enabled those she held to guide her 
safely through the tempest, and bring her up to her goal, 
in a time that really seemed miraculous for the circum- 
stances. 

“ If we had thought of it, Captain Gar’ner,” said Ste- 
phen, “ we might have brought up an ensign, and set it on 
these rocks, by way of letting the Vineyarders know where 
we are to be found. But we can always go out and meet 
them, should this wind stand.” 

“ Which is just what I have no intention of doing, Stephen. 
I came in here on purpose to get rid of that schooner.” 

“ You surprise me, sir ! A consort is no bad thing, 
when a craft is a-sealin’ in a high latitude. The ice makes 
such ticklish times, that, for me, I ’m always glad to know 
there is such a chance for taking a fellow off, should there 
happen to be a wrack.” 

“ All that is very true, but there are reasons which may 
tell against it. I have heard of some islands where seals 
abound, and a consort is not quite so necessary to take 
them, as when one is wrecked.” 

“ That alters the case, Captain Gar’ner.. Nobody is 
obliged to tell of his sealing station. I was aboard one of 
the very first craft that found out that the South Shet- 


200 


THE SEA LIONS. 


lands was a famous place for seals, and no one among us 
thought it necessary to tell it to all the world. Some men 
are weak enough to put sich discoveries in the newspa- 
pers ; but, for my part, I think it quite enough to put them 
m the log.” 

“ That schooner must have the current with her, she 
comes down sc fast. She’ll be abreast of the Horn in 
half an hour longer, Stephen. We will wait, and see what 
she would be at.” 

Gardiner’s prediction was true. In half an hour, the 
Sea Lion of Holmes’s Hole glided past the rocky pyramid 
of the Horn, distant from it less than a mile. Had it been 
the object of her commander to pass into the Pacific, he 
might have done so with great apparent ease. Even 
with a southwest wind, that which blows fully half the 
time in those seas, it would have been in his power to lay 
past the islands, and soon get before it. A northeast 
course, with a little offing, will clear the islands, and when 
a vessel gets so far north as the main-land, it would take 
her off the coast. 

But Daggett had no intention of doing anything of the 
sort. He was looking for his consort, which he had hoped 
to find somewhere near the cape. Disappointed in this 
expectation, after standing far enough west to make certain 
nothing was in sight in that quarter, he hauled up on an 
easy bowline, and stood to the southward. Roswell was 
' right glad to see this, inasmuch as it denoted ignorance of 
the position of the islands he sought. They lay much far- 
ther to the westward ; and no sooner was he sure of the 
course steered by the other schooner, than he hastened 
down to the boat, in order to get his own vessel under way, 
to profit by the breeze. 

Two hours later, the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond glanced 
through the passage which led into the ocean, on an ebb- 
tide. By that time, the other vessel had disappeared in 
the southern board ; and Gardiner came out upon the 
open waters again, boldly, and certain of his course. All 
sail was set, and the little craft slipped away from the 
land with the case of an aquatic bird that is plying its 


THE SEA LIONS. 


201 


web-feet. Studding-sails were set, and the pyramid of the 
Horn soon began to lower in the distance, as the schooner 
receded. When night closed over the rolling waters, it 
was no longer visible, the vessel having fairly entered the 
Antarctic Ocean, if anything north of the circle cs>n pro©- 
erly so be termed. 


202 


THE SEA LIONS. 


CHAPTER XIV. 

All gone ! ’t is ours the goodly land — 

Look round — the heritage behold ; 

Go forth — upon the mountain stand; 

Then, if you can, be cold. 

Sprague. 

It was an enterprising and manly thing for a little ves- 
sel like the Sea Lion to steer with an undeviating course 
into the mysterious depths of the antarctic circle — mys- 
terious, far more, in that day, than at the present hour. 
But the American sealer rarely hesitates. He has very 
little science, few charts, and those oftener old than new, 
knows little of what is going on among the savans of the 
earth, though his ear is ever open to the lore of men like 
himself, and he has his mind stored with pictures of islands 
and continents that would seem to have been formed tor no 
other purpose than to meet the wants of the race of animals 
it is his business to pursue and to capture. Cape Horn and 
its vicinity have so long been frequented by this class of 
men, that they are at home among their islands, rocks, cur- 
rents, and sterility ; but to the southward of the Horn itself 
all seemed a waste. At the time of which we are writing, 
much less was known of the antarctic regions than is 
to-day ; and even now our knowledge is limited to a few 
dreary outlines, in which barrenness and ice compete for 
the mastery. Wilkes and his competitors have told us that 
a vast frozen continent exists in that quarter of tbs globe ; 
but even their daring and perseverance have not been able 
to determine more than the general fact. 

We should be giving an exaggerated and false idea of 
Roswell Gardiner’s character, did we say that he steered 
mto that great void of the southern ocean in a total indif- 
ference to his destination and objects. Very much the re- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


203 


verse was his state of mind, as he saw the high land of the 
cape sink, as it might be foot by foot, into the ocean, ami 
then lost sight of it altogether. Although the weather was 
fine for the region, it was dark and menacing. Such, in- 
deed, is usually the case in that portion of this globe, which 
appears to be the favorite region of the storms. Although 
the wind was no more than a good breeze, and the ocean 
was but little disturbed, there were those symptoms in the 
atmosphere and in the long grounds wells that came rolling 
in from the southwest, that taught the mariner the cold 
lessons of caution. We believe that heavier gales of wind 
at sea are encountered in the warm than in the cold 
months ; but there is something so genial in the air of the 
ocean during summer, and something so chilling and repul- 
sive in the rival season, that most of us fancy that the cur- 
rents of air correspond in strength with the fall of the 
mercury. Roswell knew better than this, it is true ; but 
he also fully understood where he was, and what he was 
about. As a sealer, he had several times penetrated as far 
south as the ne plus ultra of Cook ; but it had ever before 
been in subordinate situations. This was the first time in 
which he had the responsibility of command thrown on' 
himself, and it was no more than natural that he should 
feel the weight of this new burden. So long as the Sea 
Lion of the Vineyard was in sight, she had presented a 
centre of interest and concern. To get rid of her had 
been his first care, and almost absorbing object ; but now 
that she seemed to be finally thrown out of his wake, there 
remained the momentous and closely approaching difficul- 
ties of the main adventure directly before his eyes. Ros- 
well, therefore, was thoughtful and grave, his countenance 
offering no bad reflection of the sober features of the at- 
mosphere and the ocean. 

Although the season was that of summer, and the 
weather was such as is deemed propitious in the neighbor- 
hood of Cape Horn, a feeling of uncertainty prevailed over 
every other sensation. To the southward a cold mistiness 
veiled the view, and every mile the schooner advanced ap- 
peared like penetrating deeper and deeper into regions that 


204 


THE SEA LIONS. 


nature Lad hitherto withheld from the investigation of the 
mariner. Ice, and its dangers, were known to exist a few 
degrees farther in that direction ; but islands also had been 
discovered, and turned to good account by the enterprise 
of the sealers. 

It was truly a great thing for the Sea Lion of Oyster 
Pond to have thrown off her namesake of the Vineyard. 
It is true both vessels were still in the same sea, with a 
possibility of again meeting ; but Roswell Gardiner was 
steering onward towards a haven designated in degrees and 
minutes, while th^ other craft was most probably left to 
wander in uncertainty in that remote and stormy ocean. 
Our hero thought there was now very little likelihood of 
his again falling in with his late consort, and this so much 
the more, because the islands he sought were not laid down 
in the vicinity of any other known land, and were conse- 
quently out of the usual track of the sealers. This last 
circumstance was fully appreciated by our young navigator, 
and gave him confidence of possessing its treasures to him- 
self could he only find the place where nature had hid 
them. 

When the sun went down in that vast waste of water 
which lies to the southward of this continent, the little Sea 
Lion had fairly lost sight of land, and was riding over the 
long southwestern groundswell like a gull that holds its 
way steadily towards its nest. For many hours her course 
had not varied half a point, being as near as possible to 
south-southwest, which kept her a little off the wind. No 
sooner, however, did night come to shut in the view, than 
Roswell Gardiner went aft to the man at the helm, and 
orisrad him to steer to the southward, as near as the 
breeze would conveniently allow. This was a material 
change in the direction of the vessel, and, should the pres- 
ent breeze stand, would probably place her, by the return 
of light, a good distance to the eastward of the point she 
would otherwise have reached. Hitherto it had been Ros- 
well’s aim to drop his consort ; but now it was dark, and 
so much time had already passed and been improved since 
the other schooner was last seen, he believed he might 


THE SEA LIONS. 


205 


venture to steer in the precise direction he desired to go. 
The season is so short in those seas, that every hour is pre- 
cious, and no more variation from a real object could be 
permitted than circumstances imperiously required. It wat 
now generally understood that the craft was making the 
best of her way towards her destined sealing-ground. 

Independently of the discoveries of the regular explorers, 
a great deal of information has been obtained from the 
sealers themselves within the present century, touching the 
antarctic seas. It is thought that many a headland, and 
various islands, that have contributed their shares in pro- 
curing the accolades for different European navigators, 
were known to the adventurers from Stonington and other 
by-ports of this country, long before science ever laid its 
eyes upon them, or monarchs their swords on the shoulders 
of their secondary discoverers. 

That divers islands existed in this quarter of the ocean 
was a fact recognized in geography long before the Sea 
Lion was thought of ; probably before her young master 
was actually born ; but the knowledge generally possessed 
on the subject was meagre and unsatisfactory. In particu- 
lar cases, nevertheless, this remark would not apply, there 
being at that moment on board our little schooner several 
mariners who had often visited the South Shetlands, New 
Georgia, Palmer’s Land, and other known places in those 
seas. Not one of them all, however, had ever heard of 
any island directly south of the present position of the 
schooner. 

No material change occurred during the night, or in the 
course of the succeeding day, the little Sea Lion industri- 
ously holding her way toward the south pole ; making 
very regularly her six knots each hour. By the time she 
was thirty-six hours from the Horn, Gardiner believed 
himself to be fully three degrees to the southward of it, 
and consequently some distance within the parallel of sixty 
degrees south. Palmer’s Land, with its neighboring islands, 
would have been near, had not the original course carried 
the schooner so far to the westward. As it was, no. one 
could say wh^t lay before them. 


206 


THE SEA LIONS. 


The third day out, the wind hauled, and it blew heavily 
from the northeast. This gave the adventurers a great 
run. The blink of ice was shortly seen, and soon after ice 
itself, drifting about in bergs. The floating hills were grand 
objects to the eye, rolling and wallowing in the seas ; but 
chey were much worn and melted by the wash of the ocean, 
and comparatively of greatly diminished size. It was now 
absolutely necessary to lose most of the hours of darkness, 
it being much too dangerous to run in the night. The 
great barrier of ice was known to be close at hand ; and 
Cook’s “ Ne Plus Ultra,” at that time the great boundary 
of antarctic navigation, was near the parallel of latitude to 
which the schooner had reached. The weather, however, 
continued very favorable, and after the blow from the 
northeast, the wind came from the south, chill, and attended 
with flurries of snow, but sufficiently steady and not so 
fresh as to compel our adventurers to carry very short sail. 
The smoothness of the water would of Itself have announced 
the vicinity of ice ; not only did Gardiner’s calculations 
tell him as much as this, but his eyes, confirmed their re- 
sults. In the course of the fifth day out, on several occa- 
sions when the weather cleared a little, glimpses were ha<i 
of the ice in long mountainous walls, resembling many of 
the ridges of the Alps, though moving heavily under the 
heaving and setting of the restless waters. Dense fogs, 
from time to time, clouded the whole view, and the schooner 
was compelled, more than once that day, to heave-to, in 
order to avoid running on the sunken masses of ice, or 
fields, of which many of vast size now began to make their 
appearance. 

Notwithstanding the dangers that surrounded our advent- 
urers, they were none of them so insensible to the sublime 
powers of nature as to withhold their admiration from the 
many glorious objects which that lone and wild scene pre- 
sented. The icebergs were of all the hues of the rainbow, 
as the sunlight gilded their summits or sides, or they were 
left shaded by the interposition of dark and murky clouds. 
There were instances when certain of the huge frozen 
masses even appeared to be quite black, in particular posi- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


207 


dons and und6r peculiar lights ; while others, at the same 
instant, were gorgeous in their gleams of emerald and 
gold ! 

The aquatic birds, also, had now become numerous 
again. Penguins were swimming about, filling the air with 
their discordant cries, while there was literally no end of 
the cape-pigeons and petrels. Albatrosses, too, helped to 
make up the picture of animated nature, while whales were 
often heard blowing in the adjacent waters. Gardiner saw 
many signs of the proximity of land, and began to hope he 
should yet actually discover the islands laid down on his 
chart, as their position had been given by Daggett. 

In that high latitude a degree of longitude is necessarily 
much shorter than when nearer to the middle of our orb. 
On the equator, a degree of longitude measures, as is 
known to most boarding-school young ladies, just sixty 
geographical, or sixty-nine and a half English statute miles. 
But, as is not known to most boarding-school young ladies, 
or is understood by very few of them indeed, even when 
known, in the sixty-second degree of latitude, a degree of 
longitude measures but little more than thirty-two of those 
very miles. The solution of this seeming contradiction is 
so very simple that it may assist a certain class of our 
readers if we explain it, by telling them that it arises solely 
from the fact that these degrees of longitude, which are 
placed sixty geographical miles asunder at the centre or 
middle of the earth, converge towards the poles, where 
they all meet in a point. According to the best observa- 
tions Roswell Gardiner could obtain, he was just one of 
these short degrees of longitude, or two-and-thirty miles, 
to the westward of the parallel where he wished to be, 
when the wind came from the southward. The change 
was favorable, as it emboldened him to run nearer than he 
otherwise might have felt disposed to do, to the great bar- 
rier of ice which no/w formed a sort of weather-shore. For- 
tunately, the loose bergs and sunken masses had drifted off 
so far to the northward, that once within them the schooner 
had pretty plain sailing ; and Roswell, to lose none of the 
precious time of the season, ventured to run, though under 


- 208 


THE SEA LIONS. 


very short canvas, the whole of the short night that suc- 
ceeded. It is a great assistance to the navigation of those 
seas that, daring the summer months, there is scarcely any 
night at all, giving the adventurer sufficient light by which 
to thread his way among the difficulties of his pathless 
journey. 

When the sun reappeared, on the morning of the sixth 
day after he had left the Horn, Roswell Gardiner believed 
himself to be far enough west for his purposes. It now 
remained to get a whole degree farther to the south, which 
was a vast distance in those seas and in that direction, and 
would carry him a long way to the southward of the “ Ne 
Plus Ultra.” If there was any truth in Daggett, however, 
that mariner had been there ; and the instructions of the 
owner rendered it incumbent on our young man to attempt 
to follow him. More than once, thdt morning, did our 
aero regret he had not entered into terms with the Vine- 
yard men, that the effort might have been made in company. 
There was something so portentous in a lone vessel’s vent- 
uring within the ice, in so remote a region, that, to say the 
truth, Roswell hesitated. But pride of profession, ambition, 
love of Mary, dread of the deacon, native resolution, and 
the hardihood produced by experience in dangers often 
encountered and escaped, nerved him to the undertaking. 
It must be attempted, or the voyage would be lost ; and 
our young mariner now set about his task with a stern de- 
termination to achieve it. 

By this time the schooner had luffed up within a cable’s 
length of the ice, along the margin of which she was run- 
ning under easy sail. Gardiner believed himself to be quite 
as far to the westward as was necessary, and his present 
object was to find an opening, by means of which he could 
enter among the floating chaos that was spread, far and 
wide, to windward. As the breeze was driving the drift- 
ing masses to the northward, they became loosened and 
more separated, every moment ; and glad enough was Gar- 
diner to discover, at length, a clear spot that seemed to 
favor his views. Without an instant’s delay, the sheets 
were flattened in, a pull was taken on the braces, and away 


THE SEA LIONS. 


209 


went the little Sea Lion into a passage that had a hundred- 
fold more real causes of terror than the Scyllaand Chary b- 
dis of old. 

One effect of the vicinity of ice, in extensive fields, is to 
produce comparatively still water. It must blow a gale, 
and that over a considerable extent of open sea, to produce 
much commotion among the fields and bergs, though that 
heaving and setting, which has been likened to the respira- 
tion of some monster, and which seamen call the “ ground- 
swell,” is never entirely wanting among the waters of an 
ocean. On the present occasion, our adventurers were 
favored in this respect, their craft gliding forward unim- 
peded by anything like opposing billows. At the end of 
four hours, the schooner, tacking and wearing when neces- 
sary, had worked her way to the southward and westward, 
according to her master’s reckoning, some five-and-twenty 
miles. It was then noon, and the atmosphere being unusu- 
ally clear, though never without fog, Gardiner went aloft 
to take a look for himself at the condition of things around 
him. 

To the northward, and along the very passage by which 
the vessel had sailed, the ice was closing, and it was far 
easier to go on than to return. To the eastward, and to- 
wards the southeast in particular, however, did Roswell 
Gardiner turn his longing eyes. Somewhere in that quar- 
ter of the ocean, and distant now less than ten leagues, did 
he expect to find the islands of which he was' in quest, if, 
indeed, they had any existence at all. In that direction 
there were many passages open among the ice, the latter 
being generally higher than in the particular place to which 
the vessel had reached. Once or twice, Roswell mistook 
the summits of some of these bergs for real mountains, when, 
owing to the manner in which the light fell upon them, or 
rather did not fall upon them directly, they appeared dark 
and earthy. Each time, however, the sun’s rays soon came 
to undeceive him ; and that which had so lately been black 
and frowning was, as by the touch of magic, suddenly illu- 
minated, and became bright and gorgeous, throwing out 
its emerald hues, or perhaps a virgin white, that filled the 
14 


210 


THE SEA LIONS. 


beholder with delight, even amid the terrors and dangers 
by which, in very truth, he was surrounded. The glorious 
Alps themselves, those wonders of the earth, could scarcely 
compete in scenery with the views that nature lavished, in 
that remote sea, on a seeming void. But the might and 
honor of God were there, as well as beneath the equator. 

For one whole hour did Roswell Gardiner remain in the 
cross-trees, having hailed the deck, and caused the schoon- 
er’s head to be turned to the southeast, pressing her 
through the openings as near the wind as she could go. 
The atmosphere was never without fog, though the vapor 
drifted about, leaving large vacancies that were totally clear. 
One spot, in particular, seemed to be a favorite resting- 
place for these low clouds, which just there appeared to 
light upon the face of the ocean itself. A wide field of ice, 
or, it were better to say, a broad belt of bergs, lay between 
this stationary cloud and the schooner, though the exist- 
ence of the vapor early caught Roswell’s attention ; and 
during the hour he was aloft, conning the craft through a 
very intricate and ticklish channel, not a minute passed 
that the young man did not turn a look towards that veiled 
spot. He was in the act of placing a foot on the ratlin 
below him, to descend to the deck, when he half uncon- 
sciously turned to take a last glance at this distant and 
seemingly immovable object. Just then the vapor, which 
had kept rolling and moving, like a fluid in ebullition, 
while it still clung together, suddenly opened, and the bald 
head of a real mountain, a thousand feet high, came unex- 
pectedly into the view ! There could be no mistake ; all 
was too plain to admit of a doubt. There, beyond all ques- 
tion, was land; and it was doubtless the most western of 
the islands described by the dying seaman. Everything 
corroborated this conclusion. The latitude and longitude 
were right, or nearly so, and the other circumstances went 
to confirm the conjecture, or conclusion. Daggett had 
said that one island, high, mountainous, ragged, and bleak, 
but of some size, lay the most westerly in the group, while 
several others were within a few miles of it. The last were 
lower, much smaller, and little more than naked rocks. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


211 


One of these last, however he insisted on it, was a volcano 
in activity, and that, at intervals, it emitted flames as well 
as a fierce heat. By his account, however, the party to 
which he belonged had never actually visited that volcanic 
caldron, being satisfied with admiring its terrors from a 
distance. 

As to the existence of the land, Roswell got several 
pretty distinct and certain views, leaving no doubt of its 
character and position. There is a theory which tells us 
that the orb of day is surrounded by a luminous vapor, 
the source of heat and light, and that this vapor, being in 
constant motion, occasionally leaves the mass of the planet 
itself to be seen, forming what it is usual to term the “ spots 
on the sun.” Resembling this theory, the fogs of the ant- 
arctic seas rolled about the mountain now seen, withdraw- 
ing the curtain at times, and permitting a view of the 
striking and majestic object within. Well did that lone 
and nearly barren mass of earth and rock merit these ap- 
pellations ! The elevation has already been given ; and a 
rock that is nearly perpendicular, rising out of the ocean 
for a thousand feet, is ever imposing and grand. This was 
rendered so much the more so by its loneliness, its stable 
and stern position amid floating and moving mountains of 
ice, its brown sides and bald summit, the latter then recently 
whitened with a fall of pure snow, and its frowning and 
fixed aspect amid a scene that might otherwise be said to 
be ever in motion. 

Roswell Gardiner’s heart beat with delight when assured 
of success in discovering this, the first great goal of his 
destination. To reach it was now his all-absorbing desire. 
By this time the wind had got round to the southwest, and 
was blowing quite fresh, bringing him well to windward of 
the mountain, but causing the icebergs to drift in towards 
the land, and placing an impassable barrier along its western 
shore. Our young man, however, remembered that Dag- 
gett had given the anchorage as on the northeastern side 
of the island, where, according to his statements, a little 
haven would be found, in which a dozen craft might lie in 
security. To this quarter of the island Gardiner conse- 
quently endeavored to get. 


212 


THE SEA LIONS. 


There was no opening to the northward, but a pretty 
good channel was before the schooner to the southward of 
the group. In this direction, then, the Sea Lion was 
steered, and by eight bells (four in the afternoon) the 
southern point of the largest island was doubled. The 
rest of the group were made, and to the infinite delight of 
all on board her, abundance of clear water was found be- 
tween the main island and its smaller neighbors. The bergs 
had grounded apparently, as they drew near the group, 
leaving this large bay entirely free from ice, with the ex- 
ception of a few small masses that were floating through it. 
These bodies, whether field or berg, were easily avoided ; 
and away the schooner went, with flowing sheets, into the 
large basin formed by the different members of the group. 
To render “ assurance doubly sure,” as to the information 
of Daggett, the smoke of a volcano arose from a rock to 
the eastward, that appeared to be some three or four miles 
in circumference, and which stood on the eastern side of 
the great basin, or some four leagues from Sealer’s Land, 
as Daggett had at once named the principal island. This 
was, in fact, about the breadth of the main basin, which 
had two principal passages into it, the one from the south 
and the other from the northeast. 

Once within the islands, and reasonably clear of all ice, 
it was an easy thing for the schooner to run across the 
basin, or great bay, and reach the northeastern extremity 
of Sealer’s Land. As the light would continue some hours 
longer, there being very little night in that high latitude in 
December, the month that corresponds to our June, Ros- 
well caused a boat to be lowered and manned, when he 
pulled at once towards the spot where it struck him the 
haven must be found, if there were any such place at all. 
Everything turned out as it had been described by Daggett, 
and great was our youhg man’s satisfaction when he rowed 
into a cove that was little more than two hundred yards in 
diameter, and which was so completely land-locked as not 
to feel the influence of any sea outside. In general, the 
great difficulty is to land on any of the antarctic rocks, the 
breakers and surf opposing it ; but, in this spot, the smallest 


THE SEA LIONS. 


213 


boat could be laid with its bows on a beach of shingles, 
without th$ slightest risk of its being injured. The lead 
also announced good anchorage in about eight fathoms of 
water. In a word, this little haven was one of those small 
basins that so often occur in mountainous islands, where 
fragments of rock appear to have fallen from the ] irincipal 
mass as it was forced upward out of the ocean, as if pur- 
posely intended to meet the wants of mariners. 

Nor was the outer bay, or the large basin formed by the 
entire group, by any means devoid of advantages to the 
navigator. From north to south this outer bay was at 
least six leagues in length, while its breadth could not much 
have fallen short of four. Of course it was much more 
exposed to the winds and waves than the little harbor 
proper, though Roswell was struck with the great advan- 
tages it offered in several essential particulars. It was 
almost clear of ice, while so much was floating about out- 
side of the circle of islands ; thus leaving a free navigation 
in it for even the smallest boat. This was mainly owing 
to the fact that the largest island had two long crescent- 
shaped capes, the one at its northeastern and the other at 
its southeastern extremity, giving to its whole eastern side 
the shape of a new moon. The harbor just described was 
to the southward of, or within the northeastern cape, which 
our young master at once named Cape Hazard, in honor 
of his chief mate’s vigilance ; that officer having been the 
first to point out the facilities probably offered by the for- 
mation of the land for an anchorage. 

Though rocky and broken, it was by no means difficult 
to ascend the rugged banks on the northern side of the 
harbor, and Gardiner went up it, attended by Stimson, 
who of late had much attached himself to the person of his 
commander. The height of this barrier above the waves 
of the ocean was but a little less than a hundred feet, and 
when the summit was reached, a common exclamation of 
surprise, not to say delight, broke from the lips of both. 
Hitherto not a seal of any sort had been seen, and Gar- 
diner had felt some misgivings touching the benefits that 
Yere to be derived from so much hardship, exposure, and 


214 


THE SEA LIONS. 


enterprise. All doubts, however, vanished, the instant he 
got a sight of the northern shore of the island. This shore, 
a reach of several miles in extent, was fairly alive with the 
monsters of which he was in search. They lay in thou- 
sands on the low rocks that lined that entire side of the 
island, basking in the sun of the antarctic seas. There 
they were, sure enough ! Sea-lions, sea-elephants, huge, 
clumsy, fierce looking and revolting creatures, belonging 
properly to neither sea nor land. These animals were 
constantly going and coming in crowds, some waddling to 
the margin of the rocks and tumbling into the ocean in 
search of food, while others scrambled out of the water, 
and got upon shelves and other convenient places to repose 
and enjoy the light of day. There was very little conten- 
tion or fighting among these revolting looking creatures, 
though nearly every known species of the larger seals was 
among them. 

“ There is famous picking for us, master Stephen,” said 
Roswell to his companion, fairly rubbing his hands in de- 
light. “ One month’s smart work will fill the schooner, 
and we can be off before the equinox. Does it not seem 
to you that yonder are the bones of sea-lions, or of seals of 
some sort, lying hereaway as if men had been at work on 
the creatures ? ” 

“ No doubt on ’t at all, Captain Gar’ner ; as much out 
of the way as thi§ island is — and I never heard of the 
place afore, old a sealer as I am — but as much out of the 
way as it is, we are not the first to find it. Somebody has 
been here, and that within a year or two ; and he has 
picked up a cargo, too, depend on’t.” 

As all this merely corresponded with Daggett’s account 
of the place, Roswell felt no surprise ; on the contrary, he 
saw in it a confirmation of all that Daggett had stated, and 
as furnishing so much the more reason to hope for a suc- 
cessful termination to the voyage in all its parts. While 
on the rocks, Roswell took such a survey of the localities 
as might enable him to issue his orders hereafter with dis- 
cretion and intelligence. The schooner was already mak- 
ing short tacks to get close in with the island, in obedience 


THE SEA LIONS. 


215 


to a signal to that effect ; and the second mate had pulled 
out to the entrance of the little haven, with a view to act 
as pilot. Before the captain had descended from the surn- 
.mit of the northern barrier, the vessel came in under her 
jib, the wind being nearly aft, and she dropped two anchors 
in suitable spots, making another flying moor of it. 

General joy now illuminated every face. It was, in 
itself, a great point gained to get the schooner into a per- 
fectly safe haven, where her people could take their natural 
rest at night, or during their watches below, without feeling 
any apprehension of being crushed in the ice ; but here 
was not only security, but the source of that wealth of 
which they were in quest, and which had induced them all 
to encounter so many privations and so much danger. Th( 
crew landed to a man, each individual ascending to the 
summit of the barrier, to feast his eyes on the spectacle 
that lay spread in such affluent abundance, along the low 
rocks of the northern side of the island. 

As there were yet several hours of light remaining, Ros- 
well, still attended by Stimson, each armed with a sealing- 
spear or lance, not only as a weapon of defence but as a 
leaping-staff, set out to climb as high up the central ac- 
clivity of the island as circumstances would allow him to go. 
He was deceived in the distances, however, and soon found 
that an entire day would be necessary to achieve such an 
enterprise, could it be performed at all ; but he did succeed 
in reaching a low spur of the central mountain that com- 
manded a wide and noble view of all that lay to the north 
and east of it. From this height, which must have been a 
few hundred feet above the level of the ocean, our advent- 
urers got a still better view of the whole north coast, or 
of what might have been called the sealing quarter of the 
island. They also got a tolerably accurate idea of the 
^general formation of that lone fragment of rock and earth, 
as well as of the islets and islands that lay in its vicinity. 
The outline of the first was that of a rude, and of course 
an irregular triangle, the three principal points of which 
were the two low capes already mentioned, and a third that 
lay to the northward and westward. The whole of the 


216 


THE SEA LIONS. 


western or southwestern shore seemed to be a nearly per* 
pendieular wall of rock, that, in the main, rose some two 
or three hundred feet above the ocean. Against this side 
of the island in particular, the waves of the ocean were 
sullenly beating, while the ice drove up “ home,” as sailors 
express it; showing a vast depth of water. On the two 
other sides, it was different. The winds prevailed most 
from the southwest, which rendered the perpendicular face 
of the island its weather-wall ; while the two other sides 
of the triangle were more favored by position. The north 
side, of course, lay most exposed to the sun, everything of 
this nature being reversed in the southern hemisphere from 
what we have it in the northern ; while the eastern or 
northeastern side, to be precisely accurate, was protected 
by the group of islands that lay in its front. Such was 
the general character of Sealer’s Land, so far as the hur- 
ried observations of its present master enabled him to as- 
certain. The near approach of night induced him now to 
hasten to get off of the somewhat dangerous acclivities to 
which he had climbed, and to rejoin his people and his 
schooner. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


217 


CHAPTER XV. 

Ye dart upon the deep, and straight is heard 
A wilder roar ; and men grow pale, and pray : 

Ye fling its waters round you, as a bird 

Flings o’er his shivering plumes the fountain’s spray. 

See ! to the breaking mast the sailor clings ! 

Ye scoop the ocean to its briny springs, 

And take the mountain billows on your wings, 

And pile the wreck of navies round the bay. 

Bryant’s Winds. 

No unnecessary delay was permitted to interfere with 
the one great purpose of the sealers. The season was so 
short, and the difficulties and dangers of entering among 
and of quitting the ice were so very serious, that every 
soul belonging to the schooner felt the importance of ac- 
tivity and industry. The very day that succeeded the 
vessel’s arrival, not only was great progress made in the t 
preliminary arrangements, but a goodly number of fur 
seals, of excellent quality, were actually killed and secured. 
Two noble sea-elephants were also lanced, animals that 
measured near thirty feet in length, each of which yielded 
a very ample return for the risk and trouble of taking it, 
in oil. The skins of the fur seals, however, were Ros- 
well’s principal object, and glad enough was he to find 
the creature that pays this tribute to the wants and lux- 
uries of man, in numbers sufficient to promise him a 
speedy return to the northward. While the slaughter, 
and skinning, and curing, and trying out were all in ac- 
tive operation, our young man paid some attention to cer- 
tain minor arrangements, which had a direct bearing on 
the comforts of his people, as well as the getting in of 
cargo. 

An old store-house, of respectable size, had stood on the 
deacon’s wharf, while the schooner was fitting out, but it 


218 


THE SEA LIONS. 


had been taken to pieces, in order to make rcom for a 
more eligible substitute. The materials of this building, 
Roswell Gardiner had persuaded his owner to send on 
board, and they had all been received and stowed away, a 
part below and a part on deck, as a provision for the pos- 
sible wants of the people. As it was necessary to clear 
the decks and break out the hold, all these materials, con- 
sisting principally of the timbers of the frame, the siding, 
and a quantity of planks and boards, were now floated 
ashore in the cove, and hauled up on the rocks. Roswell 
took a leisure moment to select a place for the site of his 
building, which he intended to erect at once, in order to 
save the time that would otherwise be lost in pulling be- 
tween the schooner and the shore. 

It was not difficult to find the sort of spot that was desir- 
able for the dwelling. Thai chosen by Gardiner was a 
shelf of rock of sufficient extent, that lay perfectly ex- 
posed to the north and northeast, or to the sunny side of 
the island, while it was sheltered from the south and 
southwest by masses of rock, that formed a complete pro- 
tection against the colder winds of the region. These walls 
of stone, however, were not sufficiently near to permit any 
snows they might collect to impend over the building, but 
enough space was left between them and the house, to 
admit of a capacious yard, in which might be placed any 
articles that were necessary to the ordinary work, or to the 
wants of the sealers. 

Had it been advisable to set all hands at the business of 
slaughtering, Roswell Gardiner certainly would not have 
lost the time he did, in the erection of jiis house. But our 
master was a judicious and wary commander at his calling. 
The seals were now perfectly tame, and nothing was easier 
than to kill them in scores. The great difficulty was in 
removing the spoils across the rocks, as it was sometimes 
necessary to do so for a distance of several miles. Means 
were found, in the end, to use the boats on this service, 
though even then, at midsummer, the northern shore of the 
island was frequently so closely beset by the ice as com- 
pletely to block up the passage. This, too, occurred at 


THE SEA LIONS. 


219 


times when the larger bay was nearly free, and the cove, 
which went by the name of the “ Deacon’s Bight,” among 
the men, was entirely so. In order to prevent a prema- 
ture panic among the victims of this intended foray, then, 
Gardiner allowed no one to go out to “ kill ” but the ex- 
perienced hands, and no more to be slain each day than 
could be skinned or cut up at that particular time. In 
consequence of this prudent caution, the work soon got 
into a regular train ; and it was early found that more was 
done in this mode than could have been effected by a less 
guarded assault on the seals. 

As for the materials of the building, they were hauled 
up the rocks without much difficulty. The frame was of 
some size, as is the case generally with most old construc- 
tions in America ; but being of pine, thoroughly seasoned, 
the sills and plates were not so heavy but that they might 
be readily enough handled by the non-sealing portion of 
the crew. Robert Smith, the landsman, was a carpenter 
by trade, and it fell to his lot to put together again the 
materials of the old warehouse. Had there not been such 
a mechanic among the crew, however, a dozen Americans 
could, at any time, construct a house, the “ rough and 
ready ” habits of the people usually teaching them, in a 
rude way, a good deal of a great many other arts, besides 
this of the carpenter. Mott had served a part of his time 
with a blacksmith, and he now set up his forge. When 
the frame was ready, all hands assembled to assist in rais- 
ing it ; and, by the end of the first week, the building was 
actually inclosed, the labor amounting to no more than 
putting each portion in its place, and securing it there, the 
saw being scarcely used during the whole , process. This 
building had two apartments, one of which Gardiner ap- 
propriated to the uses of a sitting-room, and the other to 
that of a dormitory. Rough bunks were constructed, and 
the mattresses of the men were all brought ashore, and 
put in the house. It was intended that everybody should 
sleep in the building, as it would save a great deal of going 
to and fro, as well as a great deal of time. The cargo 
was to be collected on a shelf of rock that lay about 


220 


THE SEA LIONS. 


twenty feet below that on which the building stood ; by 
following which, it was possible to turn the highest point 
of the pass, that which formed the southern protection of 
the building, and come out on the side of the cove at an- 
other shelf, that was not more than fifty feet above the 
level of the vessel’s decks. Down this last declivity, Ros- 
well proposed to lower his casks by means of a projecting 
derrick, the rock being sufficiently precipitous to admit of 
this arrangement, while» his spare spars furnished him with 
the necessary means. Thus was every preparation made 
with judgment and foresight. 

In this manner did the first ten days pass, every man 
and boy being as busy as bees. To own the truth, no at- 
tention was paid to the Sabbath, which would seem to have 
been left behind them by the people, among the descend- 
ants of those Puritans who were so rigid in their observance 
of that festival. At the end of the time just mentioned, a 
great deal had been done. • The house, such as it was, w T as 
completed. To be sure, it was nothing but an old store- 
house revamped, but it was found to be of infinite service, 
and greatly did all hands felicitate themselves at having 
brought its materials along with them. Even those who 
had most complained of the labor of getting the timbers 
on board, had the most often cursed them for being in the 
way, during the passage, and had continued the loudest to 
deride the idea of 44 sealers turning carpenters,” were 
shortly willing to allow that the possession of this dwelling 
was of the greatest value to them, and that, so far from the 
extra work’s causing them to fall behind in their main op- 
erations, the comfort they found, in having a home like this 
to go to, after a long day’s toil, refreshed them to a degree 
which enabled every man to return to his labor, with a zeal 
and an energy that might otherwise have been wanting. 
Although it was in the warmest season of the year, and the 
nights could scarcely be called nights at all, yet the sun 
never got very low without leaving a chilliness in the air 
that would have rendered sleeping without a cover and a 
protection from the winds, not only excessively uncomfort- 
able, but somewhat dangerous. Indeed, it was often found 


THE SEA LIONS. 


221 


necessary to light a fire in the old warehouse. This was 
done by means of a capacious box-stove, that was almost as 
old as the building itself, and which had also been brought 
along as an article of great necessity in that climate. Fuel 
could not be wanting, as long as the “ scraps ” from the 
try-works abounded, and there were many more of these 
than were needed to “ try out ” the sea-elephant oil. The 
schooner, however, had a very ample supply of wood to 
burn, that being an article which abounded on Shell cr 
Island, and which the deacon had consented to lay in, in 
some abundance. Gardiner got this concession out of the 
miserly temperament of the old man, by persuading him 
that a sealer could not work to any advantage, unless he 
had the means of occasionally warming himself. The mi- 
serly propensities of the deacon were not so engrossing that 
he did not comprehend the wisdom of making sufficient out- 
lay to secure the execution of his main object ; and among 
other things of this nature, the schooner had sailed with a 
very large supply of wood, as has just been stated. Wood 
and onions, indeed, were more abundant in her than any 
other stores. 

The arrangements described were completed by the end 
of the first fortnight, during which period the business of 
sealing was also carried on with great industry and success. 
So very tame were the victims, and so totally unconscious 
of the danger they incurred from the presence of man, that 
the crew moved round among them, seemingly but very 
little observed, and not at all molested. The utmost care 
was taken to give no unnecessary alarm ; and when an ani- 
mal was lanced, it was done in such a quiet way as to pro- 
duce as little commotion as possible. By the end of the 
time named, however, the sealing had got so advanced as 
to require the aid of all hands in securing the spoils. To 
work, then, everybody went, with a hearty good-will ; and 
the shelf of rock just below the house was soon well gar- 
nished with casks and skins. Had the labor been limited 
to the mere killing, and skinning, and curing, and barrel- 
ing of oil, it would have been comparatively quite light ; 
but the necessity of transporting the fruits of all this skill 


222 


THE SEA LIONS. 


and luck considerable distances, in some cases several 
miles, and this over broken rocks, formed the great obsta- 
cle to immediate success. It was the opinion' of Roswell 
Gardiner, that he could have filled his schooner in a month, 
were it possible to place her directly alongside of the rocks 
frequented by the seals, and prevent all this toil in trans- 
porting. This, however, was impossible, the waves and the 
Ice rendering it certain destruction to lay a craft anywhere 
along the northern shore of the island. The boats might 
be, and occasionally they were used bringing loads of skin 
and oil round the cape, quite into the cove. These little 
cargoes were immediately transferred to the hold of the 
schooner, a ground-tier of large casks having been left in 
her purposely to receive the oil, which was emptied into 
them by means of a hose. By the end of the third week 
this ground-tier was filled, and the craft became stiff, and 
was in good ballast trim, although the spare water was now 
entirely pumped out of her. 

All this time the weather was very fair for so high a 
latitude, and every way propitious. The twenty-third day 
after the schooner got in, Roswell was standing on a spur 
of the hill, at no great distance from the house, overlooking 
the long reach of rocky coast over which the “ sea-ele- 
phants,” and “ lions,” and “ dogs,” and “ bears,” were wad- 
dling in as much seeming security as the hour when he first 
saw them. The sun was just rising, and the seals were 
clambering up out of the water to enjoy its warm rays, as 
they placed themselves in positions favorable to such a 
purpose. 

“ That is a pleasant sight to a true sealer, Captain Gar’* 
ner,” observed Stimson, who as usual had kept near his 
officer, “ and one that I can say I never before saw equaled. 
I ’ve been in this business now some five-and-twenty years, 
and never before have I met with so safe a harbor for a 
craft, and so large herds that have not been stirred up and 
got to be skeary.” 

“ We have certainly been very fortunate thus far, Ste- 
phen, and I am now in hopes we may fill up and be off in 
good season to get clear of the ice,” returned Roswell. 
“ Our luck has been surprising, all things considered.” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


223 

/ 

“ You call it luck, Captain Gar’ner ; but, in my creed, 
there is a truer and a better word for it, sir.” 

“ Ay, I know well enough what you mean Stephen • 
though I cannot fancy that Providence cares much whethei 
we shall take a hundred seals to-day, or none at all.” 

“ Such is not my idee, sir ; and I ’m not ashamed to own 
it. In my humble way of thinking, Captain Gar’ner, the 
finger of Divine Providence is in all that comes to pass ; if 
not straight ahead like, as a body would receive a fall, still, 
by sartain laws that bring about everything that is to hap- 
pen, just as it does happen. I believe now, sir, that Provi- 
dence does not intend we shall take any seals at all to-day, 
sir.” 

“ Why not, Stimson ? It is the very finest day we have 
had since we have been on the island ! ” 

“ That’s true enough ; and it is this glorious sunny day, 
glorious and sunny for sich a high latitude, that makes me 
feel and think that this day was not intended for work. 
You probably forget it is the Sabbath, Captain Gar’ner.” 

“ Sure enough ; I had forgotten that, Stephen ; but we 
sealers seldom lie by for such a reason.” 

“ So much the worse for us sealers, then, sir. This is 
my seventeenth v’y’ge into these seas, sir, and I will say 
that more of them have been made with officers and crews 
that did not keep the Sabbath, than with officers and crews 
that did. Still, I have obsarved one thing, sir, that the 
man who takes his rest one day in seven, and freshens his 
mind, as it might be, with thinking of other matters than 
his every-day consarns, comes to his task with so much 
better will, when he does set about it, as to turn off greater 
profit than if he worked night and day, Sundays and all.” 

Roswell Gardiner had no great reverence for the Chris- 
tian Sabbath, and this more because it was so called , than 
for any sufficient reason in itself. Pride of reason rendered 
him jealous of everything like a concession to the faith of 
those who believed in the Son of God ; and he was very 
apt to dissent from all admission that had even the most 
remote bearing on its truth. Still, as a kind-hearted com- 
mander, as well as a judicious reasoner cn the economy of 


224 


THE SEA LIONS. 


his fellow-creatures, he fully felt the policy of granting re- 
laxation to labor. Nor was he indisposed to believe in the 
care of a Divine Providence, or in its 'justice, though less 
believing in this respect than the illiterate but earnest- 
minded seaman who stood at his side. He knew very well 
that “ all work, and no play, makes Jack a dull boy ; ” and 
he understood well enough that it was good for man, at 
stated seasons, to raise his mind from the cares and busi- 
ness of this world, to muse on those of the world that is to 
come. Though inclined to Deism, Roswell worshiped in 
his heart the Creator of all he saw and understood, as well 
as much that he could neither scan nor comprehend. 

“This is not the seaman’s usual way of thinking,” re- 
turned our hero, after regarding his companion for a mo- 
ment, a little intently. “ With us, there is very little 
Sabbath in blue- water.” 

“ Too little, sir ; much too little. Depend on ’t, Captain 
Gar’ner, God is on the face of the waters as well as on the 
hill-tops. His Spirit is everywhere ; and it must grieve it 
to see human beings, that have been created in his image, 
so bent on gain as to set apart no time even for rest ; much 
less for his worship and praise ! ” 

“ I am not certain you are wrong, Stimson, and I feel 
much more sure that you are right as a political economist 
than in your religion. There should be seasons of rest and 
reflection — yet I greatly dislike losing a day as fine as 
this.” 

“ ‘ The better the day, the better the deed,’ sir. No time 
is lost to him who stops in his work to think a little of his 
God. Our crew is used to having a Sabbath ; and though 
we work on lays, there is not a hand aboard us, Captain 
Gar’ner, who would not be glad to hear the word pass 
among ’em which should say this is the Lord’s Day, and 
you ’ve to knock off from your labor.” 

“ As I believe you understand the people, Stephen, and 
we have had a busy time of it since we got in, I ’ll take you 
at your word, and give the order. Go and tell Mr. Hazard 
there ’ll be no duty carried on to-day beyond what is indis- 
pensable. It is Sunday, and we ’ll make it f. day of rest.” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


225 


Truth compels us to say that Roswell was quite as much 
influenced in giving this order, by recollecting the pleasure 
it would give Mary, as by .any higher consideration. 

Glad enough was Stimson to hear this order, and away 
he hastened to find the mate, that it might be at once com- 
municated to the men. Although this well-disposed seafnan 
a little overrated the motives of a portion of the crew kt 
least, he was right enough as to the manner in which they 
would receive the new regulation. Rest and relaxation 
had become, in a measure, necessary to them ; and leisure 
was also needed to enable the people to clean themselves ; 
the business in which they had been engaged being one 
that accumulates oily substances, and requiring occasional 
purifications of the body in order to preserve the health. 
The scurvy, that great curse of long voyages, is as much 
owing to neglect of cleanliness as to diet. 

No sooner was it known that this day was to be treated 
as the Sabbath, than soap, razors, scissors, and all the usual 
appliances of the sailor’s toilet, were drawn out of bags and 
chests, and paraded about on the rocks. An hour passed 
in scrubbing, shaving, cutting hair, holding garments up 
to the light to look for holes and ascertain their condition, 
and rummaging among “ properties,” as the player would 
term the different wardrobes that were thus brought into 
view. The mates came out of the m$lee “ shaven and 
shorn,” as well as neatly attired ; and there was not a man 
on the island who did not look like a different being from 
what he had appeared an hour before, in consequence of 
this pause in the regular business of sealing, and the prom- 
ised holiday. A strict order was given that no one should 
go among the seals, as it was feared that some indiscretion 
or other might have a tendency to create an alarm. In all 
other respects the island was placed at the disposal of the 
men, if anything could be made of such a lone spot, a speck 
on the surface of the antarctic seas, and nearly encircled by' 
mountains of floating ice. 

As for Roswell himself, after reading a chapter or two 
\n Mary Pratt’s Bible, he determined to make another effort 
to ascend to the summit of the sterile rocks which capped 
15 


226 


THE SEA LIONS. 


the pile that rose vertically in the centre of the island. 
The day was nearly all before him ; and, summoning Stim- 
son as a companion, for he had taken a great fancy to this 
man, away he went, young, active, and full of buoyancy. 
Almost at the same instant, Hazard, the chief mate, pulled 
out of the cove in one of the whale-boats, manned by vol- 
unteers and provided with sails, with an intention to cross 
the Great Bay, and get a nearer view of the volcanic hill, 
out of which smoke was constantly pouring, and occasionally 
flames. The second mate and one or two of the hands 
remained near the house, to keep a lookout on the vessel 
and other property. 

The season had now advanced to the first day of Janu- 
ary, a month that in the southern hemisphere corresponds 
with our own July. As Roswell picked his way among the 
broken rocks that covered the ascent to what might be 
termed the table-land of the island, if indeed any portion 
of so ragged a bit of this earth could properly be so named, 
his thoughts recurred to this question of the season, and to 
the probability of his getting a cargo before it would be 
absolutely necessary to go to the northward. On the whole, 
he fancied his chances good ; and such he found to be 
Stimson’s opinion, when this experienced sealer was ques- 
tioned on the subject. 

“We’ve begun right in all respects but one, Captain 
Gar’ner,” said Stephen, as he closed his remarks on the 
subject ; “ and even in that matter in which we made a 
small mistake at the outset, we are improving, and I hope 
will come out right in the end. I said a small mistake, but 
in this I ’m wrong, as it was a great mistake.” 

“ And what was it, Stephen ? Make no bones of telling 
me of any blunder I may have committed, according to 
your views of duty. You are so much older than myself, 
that I ’ll stand it.” 

“ Why, sir, it ’s not in seamanship, or in sealing ; if it 
was, I ’d hold my tongue ; but it ’s in not keeping the 
Lord’s Day from the hour when we lifted our anchor in 
that bay that bears the name of your family, Captain Gar’- 
ner ; and which ought to be, and I make no doubt is, dear 


THE SEA LIONS. 


227 


to you on that account, if for no other reason. I rather 
think, from what they tell me, that the old Lord Gar’ner 
of all had much preaching of the word, and much praying 
to the Lord in the old times, when he lived there.” 

“ There never was any Lord Gardiner among us,” re- 
turned Roswell, modestly, “ though it was a fashion among 
the east-enders to give that title to the owner of the island. 
My ancestor who first got the place was Lyon Gardiner, 
an engineer in the service of the colony of Connecticut.” 

“ Well, whether he was a lion or a lamb, I ’ll answer for 
it the Lord was not forgotten on that island, Captain Gar’- 
ner, and he should n’t be on this. No man ever lost any- 
thing in this world, or in that which is to come a’ter it, by 
remembering once in seven days to call on his Creator to 
help him on in his path. I ’ve heard it said, sir, that you ’re 
a little partic’lar like in your idees of religion, and that you 
do not altogether hold to the doctrines that are preached 
up and down the land.” 

Roswell felt his cheeks warm at this remark, and he 
thought of Mary, and of her meek reliance on that Saviour 
whom, in the pride of his youth, strength, and as he fancied 
of his reason also, he doubted about as being the Son of 
God. The picture thus presented to his mind had its 
pleasant and its unpleasant features. Strange as it may 
seem, it is certain that the young man would have loved, 
would have respected Mary less than he now did, could he 
imagine that she entertained the same notions on this very 
subject as those he entertained himself! Few men relish 
infidelity in a woman, whose proper sphere would seem to 
be in believing and in worshiping, and not in cavilling, or 
in splitting straws on matters of faith. Perhaps it is that 
we are apt to associate laxity of morals with laxity of be- 
lief, and have a general distaste for releasing the other sex 
from any, even the smallest of the restraints that the dog- 
mas of the church impose ; but we hold it to be without 
dispute that, with very few exceptions, every man would 
prefer that the woman in whom he feels an interest should 
err on the side of bigotry rather than on that of what is 
called liberalism in points of religious belief. Thus it is 


228 


THE SEA LIONS. 


with most of us, and thus was it with Roswell Gardiner. 
He could not wonder at Mary’s rigid notions, considering 
her education ; and, on the whole, he rather liked her the 
better for them, at the very moment that he felt they might 
endanger his own happiness. If women thoroughly under- 
stood how much of their real power and influence with men 
arises from their seeming dependence, there would be very 
little tolerance in their own circles for those among them 
who are for proclaiming their independence and their right 
to equality in all tilings. 

While our young mariner and his companion were work- 
ing their way up to the table-land, which lay fully three 
hundred feet above the level of the sea, there was little 
opportunity for further discourse, so rough was the way, 
and so difficult the ascent. At the summit, however, there 
was a short pause, ere the two undertook the mountain 
proper, and they came to a halt to take a look at the aspect 
of things around^them. There was the boat, a mere white 
speck on the water, flying away with a fresh northerly 
breeze towards the volcano, while the smoke from the lat- 
ter made a conspicuous and not very distant land-mark. 
Nearer at home, all appeared unusually plain for a region 
in which fogs were so apt to prevail. The cove lay almost 
beneath them, and the schooner, just then, struck the imag- 
ination of her commander as a fearfully small craft to come 
so far from home and to penetrate so deep among the mazes 
of the ice. It was that ice, itself, however, that attracted 
most of Roswell’s attention. Far as the eye could reach, 
north, south, east and west, the ocean was brilliant and chill 
with the vast floating masses. The effect on the air was 
always perceptible in that region, “ killing the summer,” as 
the sealers expressed it ; but it seemed to be doubly so at 
the elevation to which the two adventurers had attained. 
Still, the panorama was magnificent. The only part of the 
ocean that did not seem to be alive with icebergs, if one 
may use such an expression, was the space within the group, 
and that was as clear as an estuary in a mild climate. It 
really appeared as if nature had tabooed that privileged 
spot, in order that the communication between the different 


229 


THE SEA LIONS. 

islands should remain open. Of course, the presence of so 
many obstacles to the billows without, and indeed even to 
the rake of the winds, produced smooth water within, the 
slow, breath-like heaving and setting of the ceaseless 
groundswell, being the only perceptible motion to the 
water inside. 

“ ’Tis a very remarkable view, Stephen,” said Roswell 
Gardiner, u but there will be one much finer, if we can 
work our way up that cone of a mountain, and stand on 
its naked cap. I wish I had brought an old ensign and a 
small spar along, to set up the gridiron, in honor of the 
States. We ’re beginning to put out our feelers, old Stim- 
son, and shall have ’em on far better bits of territory than 
this, before the earth has gone round in its track another 
hundred years.” 

“ Well, to my notion, Captain Gar’ner,” answered the 
seaman, following his officer towards the base of the cone, 
“ Uncle Sam has got more land now than he knows what 
to do with. If a body could discover a bit of ocean, or 
a largish sort of a sea, thei^fe might be some use in it. 
Whales are getting to be skeary, and are mostly driven 
off their old grounds ; and as for the seals, you must bury 
yourself, craft and all, up to the truck in ice, to get a 
smile from one of their good-lookin’ count’nances, as I al- 
ways say.” 

“ I ’m afraid, Stephen, it is all over with the discovery 
of more seas. Even the moon, they now say, is altogether 
without water, having not so much as a lake or a large 
pond to take a duck in.” 

“ Without water, sir ! ” exclaimed Stimson, quite aghast. 
“ If ’t is so, sir, it must be right, since the same hand that 
made the moon made this ’arth, and all it contains. But 
what can they do for seafaring folks in the moon, if what 
you tell me, Captain Gar’ner, is the truth ? ” 

“ They must do without them. I fancy oil and skins are 
not very much in demand among the moonites, Stephen. 
What ’s that, off here to the eastward, eh ? East-and-by- 
north-half-east, or so ? ” 

“ I see what you mean, sir. It does look wonderfully 
like a sail, and a sail pretty well surrounded by ice too 1 ” 


230 


THE SEA LIONS. 


There was no mistake in the matter. The whole can 
vas of a vessel was plainly visible, over a vast breadth of 
field-ice, a little to the northward of the island that lay 
directly opposite the cove. Although the sails of this 
stranger were spread, it was plain enough he was closely 
beset, if not actually jammed. From the first instant he 
saw the strange craft, Roswell had not a doubt of her char- 
acter. He felt convinced it was his late consort, the Sea 
Lion of the Yineyard, which had found her way to the 
group by means of some hint that had fallen into Dag- 
gett’s hands, if not by a positive nautical instinct. So 
great had been his own success, however, and so certain 
did he now feel of filling up in due season, that he cared 
much less for this invasion on his privacy than he woulcT 
have done a fortnight earlier. On the contrary, it might 
be a good thing to have a consort in the event of any 
accident occurring to his own vessel. From the moment, 
then, that Gardiner felt certain of the character of the 
strange sail, his policy was settled in his own mind. It 
was to receive his old acquaintance with good will, and 
to help fill him up too, as soon as he had secured his own 
cargo, in order that they might sail for home in company. 
By his aid and advice, the other schooner might save a 
week in time at that most important season of the year ; 
and by the experience and exertions of his people, a whole 
mouth in filling up might readily be gained. 

All thoughts of climbing the peak were at once aban- 
doned; and, in fifteen minutes after the sail was seen, 
Roswell and Stephen both came panting down to the 
house ; so much easier is it to descend in this world than 
to mount. A swivel was instantly loaded and fired as a 
signal ; and, in half an hour, a boat was manned and 
ready. Roswell took command himself, leaving his second 
mate to look after the schooner. Stimson went with his 
captain, and in less than one hour after he had first seen 
the strange sail, our hero was actually pulling out of the 
cove, with a view to go to her assistance. Roswell Gar- 
diner was as good-hearted a fellow as ever lived. He had 
a sufficient regard for his own interests, as well as for 


THE SEA LIONS. 


231 


those oi others intrusted to his care; but, these main 
points looked after, he would cheerfully have worked a 
month to relieve the Vineyard men from the peril that so 
plainly beset them. Setting his sails the instant the boat 
was clear of the rocks, away he went, then, as fast as ash 
and canvas could carry him, which was at a rate but little 
short of eight knots in the hour. 

As he was thus flying towards his object, our young 
mariner formed a theory in his own mind, touching the 
drift of the ice in the adjacent seas. It was simply this. 
He had sounded in entering the great bay, and had ascer- 
tained that comparatively shallow water existed between 
the southeastern extremity of Sealer’s Land and the 
nearest island opposite. It was deep enough to admit the 
largest vessel that ever floated, and a great deal more than 
this ; but it was not deep enough to permit an iceberg to 
pass. The tides, too, ran in races among the islands, which 
prevented the accumulation of ice at the southern entrance, 
while the outer currents seemed to set everything past the 
group to allow of the floating mountains to collect to the 
eastward, where they appeared to be thronged. It was on 
the western verge of this wilderness of icebergs and ice 
fields that the strange sail had been seen working her way 
towards the group, which must be plainly in view from her 
decks, as her distance from the nearest of the islands cer- 
tainly did not exceed two leagues. 

It required more than two hours for the whaleboat of 
Roswell to cross the bay, and reach the margin of that vast 
field of ice, which was prevented from drifting in to the 
open space only by encountering the stable rocks of the 
first of the group. Every eye was now turned in quest 
of an opening, by means of which it might be possible to 
get farther to the eastward. One, at length, was dis- 
covered, and into it Gardiner dashed, ordering his boat’s 
crew to stretch themselves out at their oars, though every 
man with him thought they were plunging into possible 
destruction. On the boat went, however, now sheering to 
stai board, now to port, to avoid projecting spurs of ice, 
until she had ploughed her way through a fearfully narrow, 


232 


THE SEA LIONS. 


and a deviating passage, that sometimes barely permitted 
them to go through, until a spot was reached where the 
two fields which formed this strait actually came in close 
crushing contact with each other. Roswell took a look 
before and behind him, saw that his boat was safe owing 
to the formation of the two outlines of the respective 
fields, when he sprang upon the ice itself, bidding the boat- 
steerer to wait for him. A shout broke out of the lips of 
the young captain the instant he was erect on the ice. 
There lay the schooner, the Martha’s Vineyard craft, 
within half a mile of him, in plain sight, and in as plain 
jeopardy. She was jammed, with every prospect, as Ros- 
well thought, of being crushed, ere she could get free from 
the danger. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


233 


CHAPTER XVI. 

A sculler’s notch in the stern he made, 

An oar he shaped of the bottle blade ; 

Then sprung to his seat with a lightsome leap 
And launched afar on the calm, blue deep. 

The Culprit Fat. 

Roswell was hardly on the ice before a sound of a 
most protentous sort reached his ear. He knew at once 
that the field had been rent in twain by outward pressure, 
and that some new change was to occur that might release 
or might destroy the schooner. He was on the point of 
springing forward in order to join Daggett, when a call 
from the boat arrested his steps. 

“ These here fields are coming together, Captain Gar’- 
ner, and our boat will soon be crushed unless we get it out 
of the water.” 

Sure enough, a single glance behind him sufficed to as- 
sure the young master of the truth of this statement. The 
field he was on was slowly swinging, bringing its western 
margin in closer contact with the eastern edge of the floe 
that lay within it. The movement could be seen merely 
by the closing of the channel through which the boat had 
come, and by the cracking and crushing of the ice on the 
edges of the two fields. So tremendous was the pressure, 
however, that cakes as large as a small house were broken 
off, and forced upward on the surface of the- field, or 
ground into small fragments, as it might be under the vice 
of a power hitherto unknown to the spectators. Slow as 
was the movement of the floe, it was too fast to allow of 
delay ; and, finding a suitable place, the boat was hauled 
up, and put in security on the floe that lay nearest the 
schooner. 

“ This may give us a long drag to get back into tha 


231 


THE SEA LIONS. 


water, Stimson, and a night out of our bunks,” said Ros- 
well, looking about him, as soon as the task was achieved. 

“ I do not know that, sir,” was the answer. “ It seems 
to me that the floe has parted alongside of them rocks, and 
if-so-be that should turn out to be the case, the whull on 
us, schooner, boat, and all hands, may drift into the bay ; 
for that there is a current setting from this quarter up to- 
wards our island, I ’m sartain of by the feel of my oar, as 
we come along.” 

“ It may be so — the currents run all manner of ways, 
and field-ice may pass the shoals, though a berg never can. 
I do not remember, nevertheless, to have ever seen even a 
floe within the group — nothing beyond large cakes that 
have got adrift by some means or other.” 

“ I have, sir, though only once. A few days a’ter we 
got in, when I was ship-keeper, and all hands was down 
under the rocks of the north eend, a field come in at the 
northern entrance of the bay, and went out at the southern. 
It might have been a league athwart it, and it drifted, as a 
body might say, as if it had some one aboard to give it the 
right sheer. Touch it did at the south cape, but just wind- 
ing as handy as a craft could have done it, in a good tide’s 
way, out to sea it went ag’in, bound to the south pole for- 
ti-’now.” 

“ Well, this is good news, and may be the means of 
saving the Vineyard craft in the end. We do seem to be 
setting bodily into the bay, and if we can only get clear 
of that island, I do not see what is to hinder it. Here is 
a famous fellow of a mountain to the northward, coming 
down before the wind, as one might say, and giving us a 
cant into the passage. I should think that chap must pro- 
duce some sort of a change, whether it be for better or 
worse.” 

“ Ay, ay, sir,” put in Thompson, who acted as a boat- 
steerer at need, “ he may do just that, but it is all he can 
do. Mr. Green and I sounded out from the cove for a 
league or more, a few days since, and we found less than 
twenty fathoms, as far as we went. That chap up to the 
nor’ard there, draws something like a hundred fathoms, if 


THE SEA LIONS. 


235 


he draws an inch. He shows more above water than a 
firstrate’s truck.” 

“ That does he, and a good deal to spare. Thompson, 
do you and Todd remain here, and look after the boat, 
while the rest of us will shape our course for the schooner. 
She seems to be in a wicked berth, and ’t will be no more 
than neighborly to try to get her out of it.” 

Truly enough might Roswell call the berth of the Sea 
Lion, of the Vineyard, by any expressive name that im- 
plied danger. When the party reached her, they found 
the situation of that vessel to be as follows : She had 
been endeavoring to work her way through a passage be- 
tween two large fields, when she found the ice closing, and 
that she was in great danger of being “ nipped.” Dag- 
gett was a man of fertile 'resources, and great decision of 
character. Perceiving that escape was impossible, all 
means of getting clear being rendered useless by the floes 
soon touching, both before and behind him, he set about 
adopting the means most likely to save his vessel. Select- 
ing a spot where a curve in the margin of the field to 
leeward promised temporary security at least, he got his 
vessel into it, anchored fast to the floe. Then he com- 
menced cutting away the ice, by means of axes first, and 
of saws afterwards, in the hope that he might make 
such a cavity as, by its size and shape, would receive the 
schooner’s hull, and prevent her destruction. For several 
hours had he and his people been at this work, when, to 
their joy, as well as to their great astonishment, they were 
suddenly joined by Roswell and his party. The fact was, 
that . so intently had every one of the Vineyard men’s 
faculties been absorbed by their own danger, and so much 
was each individual occupied by his own duty, that not a 
man among them had seen the boat, or even any of the 
crew, until Gardiner called out to Daggett as he approached, 
announcing his presence by his voice. 

“ This is good fortune, truly, Captain Gar’ner,” said 
Daggett, shaking his brother master most cordially by the 
hand ; “ good fortune, do I call it ! I was satisfied that I 
should fall in with you, somewhere about this group of 


236 


THE SEA LIONS. 


islands, for they lie just about where my late uncle had 
given us reason to suppose some good sealing ground 
might be met with ; but I did not hope to see you this 
morning. You observe our position, Captain Gar’ner ; 
there is every prospect of a most awful nip ! ” 

“ There is, indeed, though I see you have been making 
jome provision for it. What luck have you had in digging 
i slip to let the schooner into ? ” 

“ Well, we might have had worse, though better would 
have been more agreeable. It ’s plain sailing, so long as 
we can work above water, and you see we ’ve cleared a 
fine b )rth for the craft, down to the water’s edge ; but 
below that, ’t is blind work and slow. The field is some 
thirty feet thick, and sawing through it is out of the ques- 
tion. The most we can do is to get off pieces diagonally. . 
I am not without hopes that we have done enough of this 
to make a wedge, on which the schooner will rise, if pressed 
hard on her off-side. I have heard of such things, Cap- 
tain Gar’ner, though I cannot say I ever saw it.” 

“ It ’s a ticklish business to trust to such a protector ; 
still, a great deal must be gained by cutting away so much 
of this upper ice, and it is possible your schooner may be 
lifted, as you seem to expect. Has anything been done to 
strengthen the craft in-board ? ” 

“ Not as yet ; though I ’ve thought of that, too. But 
what is the stoutest ship that ever floated, against the press- 
ure of such an enormous field of ice ? Had we not better 
keep cutting away ? ” 

“ You can continue to work the saw and the axes, but I 
will give an eye to strengthening the craft in-board. Just 
point out the spars and plank you can spare, and we ’ll see 
what can be done. At any rate, my lads, you can now 
work with the certainty that your lives are safe. My 
schooner lies about six leagues from you, as safely moored 
as if she lay in a dock. Come, Captain Daggett, let me 
see your spare spars and plank.” 

Great encouragement it certainly was to these mariners, 
so far from home, and in their imminently perilous con- 
dition, to know that a countryman and a friend was so 


THE SEA LIONS. 


237 


near them, to afford shelter and protection. The Ameri- 
can sailor is not a cheering animal, like his English rela- 
tive, but he quite as clearly understands what ought to be 
received with congratulation, as those who are apt to make 
more noise. The Vineyard men, in particular, were habit- 
ually quiet and thoughtful, there being but one seaman in 
the craft who did not husband his lay, and look forward 
to meet the wants of a future day. This is the result of 
education, men usually becoming quiet as they gain ideas, 
and feel that the tongue has been given to us in order to 
communicate them to our fellows. Still, the joy at receiv- 
ing this unlooked-for assistance was great among the Vine- 
yard men, and each party went to work with activity and 
zeal. 

The task of Roswell Gardiner was in-board, while that 
of Daggett and his men continued to be on the ice. The 
latter resumed the labor of cutting and sawing the field, 
and of getting up fenders, or skids, to protect the inner side 
of their vessel from the effects of a “ nip.” As for Gar- 
diner, he set about his self-assumed duty with great read- 
iness and intelligence. His business was to strengthen the 
craft, by getting supports up in her hold. This was done 
without much difficulty, all the upper part of the hold be- 
ing clear and easily come at. Spars were cut to the proper 
length, plank were placed in the broadest part of the ves- 
sel, opposite to each other, and the spars were wedged 
in carefully, extending from side to side, so as to form a 
great additional support to the regular construction of the 
schooner. In little more than an hour, Roswell had his 
task accomplished, while Daggett did not see that he could 
achieve much more himself. They met on the ice to con- 
sult, and to survey the condition of things around them. 

The outer field had been steadily encroaching upon the 
inner, breaking the edges of both, until the points of junc- 
tion were to be traced by a long line of fragments forced 
ppward, and piled high in the air. Open spaces, however, 
still existed, owing to irregularities in the outlines of the 
two floes ; and Daggett hoped that the little bay into which 
he had got his schooner might not be entirely closed, ere a 


238 


THE SEA LIONS. 


shift of wind, or a change in the tides, might carry away 
the causes of the tremendous pressure that menaced his 
security. It is not easy for those who are accustomed to 
look at natural objects in their more familiar aspects, fully 
to appreciate the vast momentum of the weight that was 
now drifting slowly down upon the schooner. The only 
ray of hope was to be found in the deficiency in one of the 
two great requisites of such a force. Momentum being 
weight , multiplied into velocity , there were some glimpses 
visible, of a nature to produce a slight degree of expectation 
that the last might yet be resisted. The movement was 
slow, but it was absolutely grand, by its steadiness and 
power. Any one who has ever stood on a lake or river 
shore, and beheld the undeviating force with which a small 
cake of ice crumbles and advances before a breeze, or in a 
current, may form some idea of the majesty of the move- 
ment of a field of leagues in diameter, and which was borne 
upon by a gale of the ocean, as well as by currents, and by 
the weight of drifting icebergs from without. It is true 
that the impetus came principally from a great distance, 
and could scarcely be detected or observed by those around 
the schooner ; still, these last were fully aware of the whole 
character of the danger, which each minute appeared to 
render more and more imminent and imposing. The two 
fields were obviously closing still, and that with a resistless 
power that boded destruction to the unfortunate vessel. 
The open water near her was already narrowed to a space 
that half an hour might suffice to close entirely. 

“ Have you set that nearest island by compass, Daggett ? ” 
asked Roswell Gardiner, as soon as he had taken a good 
look around him. “ To me it seems that it bears more to 
the eastward than it did an hour since. If this should be 
true, our inner field here must have a very considerable 
westerly set.” 

“ In which case we may still hope to drift clear,” re- 
turned Daggett, springing on board the schooner, and run- 
ning aft to the binnacle, Roswell keeping close at his side. 
“ By George ! it is as you say ; the bearings of that island 
are altered at least two points ! ” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


239 


“ In which case our drift has exceeded a league — Ha ! 
what noise is that? Can it be an eruption of the volcano ? ” 

Daggett, at first, was inclined to believe it was a sound 
produced by some of the internal convulsions of the earth, 
which within, as if in mockery of the chill scene that pre- 
vailed without, was a raging volcano, the fierce heats of 
which found vent at the natural chimneys produced by its 
own efforts. This opinion, however, did not last long, and 
he gave expression to his new thoughts in his answer. 

“ ’T is the ice,” he said. “ I do believe the pressure has 
caused the fields to part on the rocks of that island. If 
so, our leeward floe may float away, as fast as the weather 
field approaches.” 

“ Hardly,” said Roswell, gazing intently towards the 
nearest island ; “ hardly ; for the most weatherly of the 
two will necessarily get the force of the wind and the im- 
petus of those *T)ergs first, and make the fastest drift. It 
may lessen the violence of the nip, but I do not think it 
will avert it altogether.” 

This opinion of Gardiner’s fully described all that sub- 
sequently occurred. The outer floe continued its inroads 
on the inner, breaking up the margins of both, until the 
channel was so nearly closed as to bring the field from 
which the danger was most apprehended in absolute con- 
tact with the side of the schooner. When the margin of 
the outer floe first touched the bilge of the schooner, it was 
at the precise spot where the vessel had just been fortified 
within. Fenders had also been provided without, and there 
was just a quarter of a minute, during which the two cap- 
tains hoped that these united means of defense might en- 
able the craft to withstand the pressure. This delusion 
lasted but a moment, however, the cracking of timbers let- 
ting it be plainly seen that the force was too great to be 
resisted. For another quarter of a minute, the two masters 
held their breath, expecting to see the deck rise beneath 
their feet, as the ice rose along the points of contact be- 
tween the floes. Such, in all probability, would have been 
the result, had not the pressure brought about another 
change, that was quite as much within the influence of the 


240 


THE SEA LIONS. 


laws of mechanical forces, though not so much expected. 
Owing to the wedge-like form of the vessel’s bottom, as 
well as to the circumstance that the ice of the outer floe 
had a similar shape, projecting beneath the schooner’s keel, 
the craft was lifted bodily, with an upward jerk, as if she 
were suddenly released f^om some imprisoning power. 
Released she was, indeed, and that most opportunely, for 
another half-minute woulti have seen her ribs broken in, 
and the schooner a mangled wreck. As she now rose, 
Roswell gave vent to his delight in a loud cry, and all 
hands felt that the occurrence might possibly save them. 
The surge upward was fearful, and several of the men were 
thrown off their feet ; but it effectually released the schooner 
from the nip, laying her gradually up in the sort of dock 
that her people had been so many hours preparing for her 
reception. There she lay, inclining a little, partly on her 
bilge, or sewed, as seamen term it, when a vessel gets a 
list from touching the ground and being left by the tide, 
neither quite upright, nor absolutely on her beam-ends. 

No sooner was the vessel thus docked, than all apprehen- 
sion of receiving further injury from the outer floe ceased. 
It might force the schooner altogether on the inner field, 
driving the vessel before it, as an avalanche of mud in the 
Alps is known to force cottages and hamlets in its front ; 
but it could no longer “ Dip ” it. It did not appear prob- 
able to the two masters, however, that the vessel would be 
forced from its present berth, the rending and cracking of 
the ice sensibly diminishing, as the two floes came closer 
and closer together. Nor was this all : it was soon very 
obvious that the inner field was drifting, with an increased 
motion, into the bay, while the larger, or outer floe, seemed 
to hang, from some cause or other. Of the fact there was 
soon no doubt, the fissure beginning to open, as slowly and . 
steadily as it had closed, but noiselessly, and without an} 
rending of the ice. 

“We shall get you clear, Daggett! we shall get you 
clear ! ” cried Roswell, with hearty good-will, forgetting, in 
that moment of generous effort, all feelings of competition 
and rivalry. “ I know what you are after, my good fellow 


THE SEA LIONS. 


241 


— have understood it from the first. Yonder high land u 
the spot you seek ; and along the north shore of that island 
are elephants, lions, dogs, bears} and other animals, to fill 
up all the craft that ever came out of the Vineyard ! ” 

“ This is hearty, Gar’ner,” returned the other, giving his 
brother master a most cordial shake of the hand, “ and it ’a 
just what I like. Sealing is a sociable business, and a craft 
should never come alone into these high latitudes. Ac- 
cidents will happen to the most prudent man living, as you 
see by what has just befallen me ; for, to own the truth, 
we ’ve had a narrow chance of it ! ” 

The reader will remember that all which Daggett now 
said was uttered by a man who saw his vessel lying on the 
ice, with a list that rendered it somewhat difficult to move 
about on her deck, and still in circumstances that would 
have caused half the navigators of this world to despair. 
Such was not the fact with Daggett, however. Seven 
thousand miles from home, alone, in an unknown sea, and 
uncertain of ever finding the place he sought, this man had 
picked his way among mountains and fields of ice, with 
perhaps less hesitation and reluctance than a dandy would 
encounter the perils of a crossing, when the streets were 
a little moistened by rain. Even then, with his vessel 
literally shelved on the ice, certain that she had been vio- 
lently nipped, he was congratulating himself on reaching a 
sealing ground, from which he could never return without 
encountering all the same dangers over again. As for Ros- 
well, he laughed a little at the other’s opinion of the seal- 
ing business, for he wa^ morally certain the Vineyard man 
would have kept the secret, had it been in his possession 
alone. * 

“ Well, well, we ’ll forget the past,” he said, “ all but 
what we ’ve done to help one another. You stood by me 
off Hatteras, and I’ve been of some service to you here. 
You know how it is in our calling, Daggett ; first come, 
first served. I got here first, and have had the cream of 
the business for this season ; though I do not by any 
means wish to be understood as saying that you are too 
late. 1 ’ 


16 


242 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ I hope not, Gar’ner. ’T would be vexatious to have 
all this risk and trouble for nothing. How mich ile have 
you stowed ? ” • 

“ All my ground-tier, and a few riders. It is with the 
skins that we are doing the best business.” 

Daggett’s eyes fairly snapped at this announcement, 
which aroused all his professional ambition, to say nothing 
of that propensity to the “root of all evil,” which had be- 
come pretty thoroughly incorporated with his moral being, 
by dint of example, theory, and association. We have 
frequently had occasion to remark how much more “en- 
joyable,” for the intellectual and independent, is a country 
on the decline, than a country on the advance. The one 
is accumulating that wealth which the other has already 
possessed and improved ; and men cease to dwell so much 
on riches in their inmost souls, when the means of obtain- 
ing them would seem to have got beyond their reach. 
This is one of the secrets of the universal popularity of 
Italy with the idle and educated ; though the climate, and 
the monuments, and the recollections, out of doubt, con- 
tribute largely to its charms. Nevertheless, man, as a 
rule, is far more removed from the money-getting mania 
in Italy than in almost any other portion of the Christian 
world ; and this merely because the time of her wealth 
and power has gone by, leaving in its train a thousand 
fruits, that would seem to be the most savory, as the stem 
on which they grew would appear to be approaching its 
decay. On Martha’s Vineyard, however, and in no part 
of the Great Republic, indeed, has this waning season yet 
commenced, and the heart of man is still engrossed with 
those desires that are to produce the means which are to 
lay the foundations for the enjoyment of generations to 
come. 

“ That ’s luck, indeed, for a craft so early in the season,” 
returned Daggett, when his eyes had done snapping. “ Are 
the critturs getting to be wild and skeary?” 

\ “ Not more so than the day we began upon them. I 
have taken the greatest care to send none but my most 
experienced hands out to kill and skin, and their orders 


THE SEA LIONS. 


243 


have been rigid to give as little alarm as possible. If you 
wish to fill up, I would advise you to take the same pre- 
cautions, for the heel of the season is beginning to show 
itself.” 

“ I will winter here, but I get a full craft,” said Dag- 
gett, with a resolute manner, if not absolutely serious in 
what he said. “ Trouble enough have I had to find the 
group, and we Vineyard men don’t relish the idee of be- 
ing outdone.” 

“ You would be done up, my fine fellow,” answered 
Roswell, laughing, “ did you attempt to pass a winter here. 
The Sea Lion of Hum’ses Hull would not herself keep 
you in fuel, and you would have to raft it off next sum- 
mer on your casks, or remain here forever.” 

“ I suppose a body might expect to see you back again, 
another season,” observed Daggett, glancing meaningly to- 
wards his companion, as if he had seriously revolved so 
desperate a plan in his mind. “ ’T is n’t often that a sealer 
lets a station like that you ’ve described drop out of his rec- 
ollection in a single v’y’ge.” 

“ I may be back or I may not,” said Roswell, just 
then remembering Mary, and wondering if she would con- 
tinue to keep him any longer in suspense, should he return 
successful from his present adventure. “ That will depend 
on others more than on myself. I wish, however, now we 
are both here, and there can no longer be any “ hide and 
go seek 1 ” between us, that you would tell me how you 
came to know anything about this cluster of islands, or of 
the seals then and there to be found ? ” 

“ You forget my uncle, who died on Oyster Pond, and 
whose effects I crossed over to claim ? ” 

“ I remember him very well — saw him often while liv- 
ing, and helped to bury him when dead.” 

“ Well, our information came from him. He threw out 
several hints consarning sealing-grounds aboard the brig 
in which he came home ; and you need n’t be told, Gar’- 
ner, that a hint of that kind is sartain to find its way 
through all the ports down east. But hearing that there 
was new sealing-ground was n’t knowing where to find it. 


244 


THE SEA LIONS. 


I should have been at a loss, wasn’t it for the spot on my 
uncle’s chart that had been rubbed over lately, as I con- 
cluded, to get rid of some of his notes. You know, as 
well as I do, that the spot was in this very latitude and 
longitude, and so I came here to look for the much-desired 
land.” 

“ And you have undertaken such an outfit, and come 
this long distance into an icy sea, on information as slight 
is this ! ” exclaimed Roswell, astonished at this proof of 
sagacity and enterprise, even in men who are renowned for 
scenting dollars from pole to pole. 

“ On this, with a few hints picked up, here and there, 
among some of the old gentleman’s papers. He was fond 
of scribbling, and I have got a sort of a chart that he 
scratched on a leaf of his Bible, that was made to represent 
this very group, as I can now see.” 

“ Then you could have had no occasion for the printed 
chart, with the mark of obliteration on it, and did not come 
here on that authority after all.” 

“ There you ’re wrong, Captain Gar’ner. The chart of 
the group had no latitude or longitude, but just placed each 
island with its bearings and distances from the other isl- 
ands. It was no help in finding the place, which might be 
in one hemisphere as well as in the other.” 

“It was, then, the mark of the obliteration” — 

“ Marks, if you please, Captain Gar’ner,” interrupted the 
other, significantly. “ My uncle talked a good deal aboard 
of that brig about other matters besides sealing. We 
think several matters have been obliterated from the old 
chart, and we intend to look ’em all up. It ’s our right, 
you know, seeing that the old man was Yineyard-born, and 
we are his nearest of kin.” 

“ Certainly,” rejoined Roswell, laughing again, but some- 
what more faintly than before. “ Every man for him- 
self in this world is a good maxim ; it being pretty cer- 
tain if we do not take care of ourselves, no one will take 
care of us.” 

“ Yes, sir,” said Stimson, who was standing near ; “ there 
is one to care for every hair of our heads, however for 


THE SEA LIONS. 


245 


getful and careless we may be ourselves. Was n’t it for 
this, Captain Gar’ner, there ’s many a craft that comes 
into these seas that would never find its way out of ’em ; 
and many a bold sailor, with a heart boiling over with 
fun and frolic, that would be frozen to an ice-cicle every 
year ! ” 

Gardiner felt the justice of this remark, and easily par- 
doned its familiarity for its truth. In these sealers the 
discipline is by no means of that distant and military or 
naval character that is found in even an ordinary mer- 
chantman. As every seaman has an interest in the result 
of the voyage, some excuse was made for this departure 
from the more general usage ; and this familiarity itself 
never exceeded the bounds that were necessary to the ob- 
servance of duty. 

“Ay, ay,” returned Roswell, smiling ; “in one sense 
you are right enough ; but Captain Daggett and myself 
were speaking of human affairs, as human affairs are car- 
ried on. Is not this inner field drifting fast away from 
the outer, Daggett ? If so, we shall go directly into the 
bay ! ” 

It was as Gardiner thought. By some means that were 
not apparent, the floes were now actually separating, and 
at a rate of movement which much exceeded that of their 
junction. All idea of further danger from the outer field 
disappeared, as a matter of course. 

“It’s so, Captain Gar’ner,” said Stimson, respectfully, 
but with point ; “ and who and what brought it about for 
our safety and the preservation of this craft? I just 
ventur’ to ask that question, sir.” 

“ It may be the hand of Providence, my good fellow ; for 
I very frankly own I can see no direct physical cause. 
Nevertheless, I fancy it would be found that the tides or 
currents have something to do with it, if the truth could be 
come at.” 

“ Well, sir, and who causes the tides and currents to run, 
fchis-a-way and that-a-way ? ” 

“ There you have me, Stephen ; for I never could get 
hold of the clew to their movements at all,” answered Ros- 


246 


THE SEA LIONS. 


well, laughing. “ There is a reason for it all, I dare say, 
if one could only find it out. Captain Daggett, it is high 
time to look after the safety of your schooner. She ought 
to be in the cove before night sets in, since the ice has 
found its way into the bay.” 

This appeal produced a general movement. By this 
time the two fields were a hundred fathoms asunder ; the 
smaller, or that on which the vessel lay, drifting quite fast 
into the bay, under the joint influences of wind and cur- 
rent ; while the larger floe had clearly been arrested by the 
islands. This smaller field was much lessened in surface, 
in consequence of having been broken at the rocks, though 
the fragment that was thus cut off was of more than a 
league in diameter, and of a thickness that exceeded many 
yards. 

As for the Sea Lion of the Vineyard, she was literally 
shelved, as has been said. So irresistible had been the 
momentum of the great floe, that it lifted her out of the 
water as two or three hands would run up a bark canoe on 
a gravelly beach. This lifting process had, very fortunately 
for the craft, been effected by an application of force from 
below, in a wedge-like manner, and by bringing the strong- 
est defenses of the vessel to meet the power. Consequently, 
no essential injury had been done the vessel in thus laying 
her on her screw-dock. 

“ If a body could get the craft off as easily as she was 
got OTi,” observed Daggett, as he and Roswell Gardiner 
stood looking at the schooner’s situation, “ it would be but 
a light job. But, as it is, she lies on ice at least twenty 
feet thick, and ice that seems as solid as flint ! ” 

“ We know it is not quite as hard as that, Daggett,” was 
Roswell’s reply ; “for our saws and axes make great havoc 
in it, when we can fairly get at it.” 

“ If one could get fairly at it ! But here you see, Gar’- 
ner, everything is under water, and an axe is next to use- 
less. Nor can the saws be used with much advantage on 
ice so thick.” 

“ There is no help for it but hard work and great perse- 
verance. I would advise that a saw be set at work at each 


THE SEA LIONS. 


247 


end of the schooner, allowing a little room in case of acci- 
dents, and that we weaken the foundation by two deep cuts. 
The weight of the vessel will help us, and in time she will 
settle back into her ‘ native element,’ as the newspapers 
have it.” 

There was, indeed, no other process that promised suc- 
cess, and the advice of Gardiner was followed. In the 
course of the next two hours deep cuts were made with the 
saws, which were pushed so low as to reach quite to the 
bottom of the cake. This could be done only by what the 
sailors called “jury-handles,” or spars secured to the plates. 
The water offered the principal obstacle, foi that lay on the 
shelf at least five feet deep. Perseverance and ingenuity, 
however, finally achieved their aim. A cracking was heard, 
the schooner slowly righted, and settled off into the sea 
again, as easily and harmlessly as if scientifically launched. 
The fenders protected her sides and copper, though the 
movement was little more, than slowly sinking on the frag- 
ment of the cake, which, by means of the cuts, had been 
gradually so much reduced as to be unable to uphold so 
great a weight. It was merely reversing the process of 
breaking the camel’s back, by laying the last feather on 
his load. 

This happy conclusion to several hours of severe toil, 
occurred just as the field had drifted "abreast of the cove, 
and was about the centre of the bay. Hazard came up also 
at that point, on his return from the volcano, altering his 
course a little to speak the strangers. The report of the 
mate concerning his discoveries was simple and brief. 
There was a volcano, and one in activity ; but it had noth- 
ing remarkable about it. No seal were seen, and there 
was little to reward one for crossing the bay. Sterility, 
and a chill grandeur, were the characteristics of all that 
region ; and these were not wanting to any part of the 
group. Just as the sun was setting, Gardiner piloted his 
companion into the cove ; and the two Sea Lions were 
moored amicably side by side, and that too at a spot where 
thousands of the real animals were to be found within a 
league. 


248 


THE SEA LIONS. 


CHAPTER XVII. 

The morning air blows fresh on him ; 

The waves dance gladly in his sight; 

The sea-birds call, and wheel, and skim — 

Oh, blessed morning light ! 

Dana. 

The very day succeeding the arrival of the Sea Lion of 
the Vineyard, even while his mate was clearing the vessel, 
Daggett had a gang on the north shore, killing and skin- 
ning. As Roswell’s rules were rigidly observed, no other 
change was produced by this accession to the force of the 
sealers, than additional slaughter. Many more seals were 
killed, certainly, but all was done so quietly that no great 
■alarm was awakened among the doomed animals themselves. 
One great advantage was obtained by the arrival of the 
new party that occasioned a good deal of mirth at first, but 
which, in the end, was found to be of great importance to 
the progress of the work. Daggett had taken to pieces 
and brought with him the running part of a common 
country wagon, which was soon found of vast service in 
transporting the skins and blubber across the rocks. The 
wheels were separated, leaving them in pairs, and each axle 
was loaded with a freight that a dozen men would hardly 
have carried, when two or three hands would drag in the 
load, with an occasional lift from other gangs, to get them 
up a height, or over a cleft. This portion of the operation 
was found to work admirably, owing, in a great measure, 
to the smooth surfaces of the rocks ; and unquestionably 
these wheels advanced the business of the season at least 
a fortnight : Gardiner thought a month. It rendered 
the crews better natured, too, much diminishing their toil, 
and sending them to their bunks at night in a far better 
condition for rest than they otherwise could have been. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


249 


Just one month, or four weeks to a day, after the second 
schooner got in, it being Sunday of course, Gardiner and 
Daggett met on the platform of a perfectly even rock that 
lay stretched for two hundred yards directly beneath the 
house. It was in the early morning. Notwithstanding 
there was a strong disposition to work night and day on 
the part of the new-comers, Roswell’s rule of keeping the 
Sabbath as a day of rest had prevailed, and the business 
of washing, scrubbing, and shaving had just commenced. 
As for the two masters, they required fewer ablutions than 
their men, had risen earlier, and were already dressed for 
the day. 

“To-morrow will be the first day of February,” said 
Daggett, when the salutations of the morning were passed, 
“ and I was calculating my chances of getting full this sea- 
son. You will be full this week, I conclude, Gar’ner ? ” 

“We hope to be so, by the middle of it,” was the answer. 
“ I think the seal are getting to be much shyer than they 
were, and am afraid we shall demonstrate that ‘ the more 
haste is the worse speed.’ ” 

“ What is that to you ? ” returned Daggett, quickly. 
“ Of course you will sail for home as soon as you can get 
off.” 

Gardiner did not like the “ of course,” which was indi- 
rectly saying what the other would do himself under similar 
circumstances. Still, it caused no difference in his own de- 
cision, which had been made up under the influence of much 
reflection, and of a great deal of good feeling. 

“ I shall do no such thing, Captain Daggett,” was the 
answer. “ I do not fancy the idea of leaving a fellow- 
crel?ture, a countryman — nay, I might say, a neighbor, on 
this lone spot, with the uncertainty of his ever getting out 
of it. If you can come to some understanding with my 
officers and crew, I will keep the schooner here until we 
are both full, and ready to sail in company.” „ 

“In which case you would nat’rally ask a lay for your- 
self ? ” 

“ Naturally, perhaps, I might,” returned Roswell, smil- 
ing, “ though positively, I shall not. Not one of us in 


250 


THE SEA LIONS. 


the cabin will look for any other advantage than your 
good company. I have talked this matter over with my 
mates, and they say that the advantage of having a con- 
sort in getting through the ice is sufficient to justify us in 
holding on two or three weeks longer. With the men, it 
will be a little different, perhaps ; and they will require 
some pay. The poor fellows live by their hands, and what 
their hands do they will expect to be compensated for.” 

“ They shall have good lays, depend on it. As for your- 
self, Captain Gar’ner, I trust my owners will not forget to 
do what is right, if we ever get home, and meet with luck 
in the market.” 

“ Never fear for me, Daggett. I look for my reward 
in the bright eyes and pleasant smiles of as excellent a 
girl as Long Island can produce. Mary never fails to re- 
ward me in that way whenever I do right. It is right to 
stand by you just now — to do as I would be done by ; 
and I ’ll do it. Set the thing down as decided, but make 
your bargain with my men. And now, Daggett, what say 
you to climbing yonder mountain to-day, by way of getting 
a good survey of our territories, as well as to take a look 
at the state of the ice ? ” 

Daggett assented very cheerfully, his mind being greatly 
relieved by this assurance of standing by him, on the part 
of Roswell ; for he had been undecided whether to remain 
after the departure of the other schooner or not. All was 
now clear to him, however, and the two masters made their 
preparations to ascend the mountain as soon as they had 
breakfasted. Stimson was summoned to be of the party, 
his officer haviug got to be accustomed to, and desirous of, 
his company. 

For the first two hours after quitting the house, Gardi- 
ner, Daggett, and the boat-steerer were busily employed 
in working their way across the broken surface of the 
island, to the base of the cone-like pinnacle that formed 
the apex of all. There they rested, and took a little re- 
freshment, conversing the while on the state of the ice in 
the offing, so far as the last could be seen from their pres- 
ent elevation. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


251 


“We shall have a sharp hill to climb, should we succe>l 
in getting up here,” observed Roswell, “ though the rocks 
appear to be quite clear of snow just now.” 

“ Just now, or never. This is the antarctic dog-days, 
Gar’ner,” answered Daggett, laughing, “ and we must make 
the most of them A man can move about without his 
pee-jacket at noon-lay, and that is something gained ; for I 
have heard of ice making in the bays, even at midsum- 
mer.” 

“ We are not in a high enough latitude for that, thank 
heaven, though pretty well south too. This is our harvest- 
time here, sure enough, and we had better look to it.” 

As Gardiner said this, the eyes of all three were turned 
on the sterile scene around them. The island was not 
absolutely destitute of vegetation, as is the case a few de- 
grees farther south ; but it might be said to be nearly so. 
A few stunted plants were to be seen in the fissures of the 
rocks, and a little soil had been made, seemingly by the 
crumbling of the stones, in which a wiry grass occasionally 
showed itself. As for the mountain, however, it was 
mostly bare ; and when our party began to climb, the as- 
cent was not only difficult, but in places dangerous. Ros- 
well had foreseen this, and he had made a provision ac- 
cordingly. In addition to his lance, used as a leaping-staff 
and walking-pike, each man had a small coil of ratlin-stuff 
thrown over his shoulder, in order to help him in difficult 
places, or enable him to help his companions. It was in 
the descent chiefly that these ropes were expected to be of 
service, though their utility was made apparent ere the 
three reached the summit. The ascent of a mountain a 
thousand feet in height is no great exploit under ordinary 
circumstances. Even when there are precipitous cliffs, 
gorges, ravines and broken masses, youth, activity, and 
courage will commonly overcome all the difficulties, placing 
the foot of man on eminences that nature would appear to 
have intended solely for the dominion of the goat. Thus 
did it turn out with the three sealers, all of whom stood 
on the bald cap of that mountain, after a vigorous and 
somewhat hazardous ascent, that occupied rather more 


252 


THE SEA LIONS. 


than an hour. They had greatly aided each other in 
achieving their purpose, to be sure ; and the ratlin-stuff 
was found of use on more than one occasion. 

An extraordinary, and, considering the accessories, a 
most brilliant view, rewarded the adventurers. But, after 
a few minutes passed in pure admiration of what they be- 
held, the minds of all three adverted to the parts which 
gave such unusual splendor to the panorama. Icebergs 
were visible on all sides of them, the great bay excepted ; 
and the group was surrounded by them, in a way that 
would seem to proclaim a blockade. At that season, the 
south winds prevailed, though changes were frequent and 
sudden, and the vast frozen fleet was drifting north. Gar- 
diner saw that the passage by which he had brought in 
his schooner was now completely closed, and that the only 
means of exit from the bay was by its northern outlet. 
The great depth of the bergs still prevented their coming 
within the cluster of islands, while their number and size 
completely stopped the floes from passing. 

To the northward, the sea was much more open. Gar- 
diner and Daggett both thought, as they gaued in that di- 
rection, that it would be easy enough to take a vessel 
through the difficulties of the navigation, and that a good 
run of eight-and-forty hours would carry her quite beyond 
the crowded ice. This sight awakened some regrets in 
the two masters, that they were not then in a condition to 
depart. 

“ I am almost sorry that we have made a holiday of 
the Sunday,” said Daggett, seating himself on a point of 
rock, to get a little rest after so fatiguing an ascent. 
“ Every minute of time is precious to men in our situa- 
tion ” 

“ Every minute of time is precious to all men, Captain 
Daggett, in another and a still more important sense, if 
they did but know it,” put in Stimson, with a zealous free- 
dom, and a Christian’s earnestness. 

“ I understand you, Stephen, and will not gainsay it. 
But a sealin’ v’y’ge is no place, after all, for a man to give 
himself up to Sabbaths and religion.” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


253 


“ All places are good, sir, and all hours Sabbaths, when 
the heart is in the true state. God is on this naked rock, 
as He is on the Vineyard ; and a thought, or a syllable, in 
his praise, on this mountain, are as pleasant to Him as them 
that arise from churches and priests.” 

“ I believe it is, at least, a mistake in policy to give the 
men no day of rest,” said Roswell, quietly. “ Though not 
prepared to carry matters as far as my friend Stephen here, 
I agree with him entirely in that.” 

“ And not in believing, sir, that the Spirit of God is t>n 
this island ? ” 

“ In that too, certainly. Neither Captain Daggett nor 
myself will be disposed to dispute either of these two prop- 
ositions, I think, when we come to reflect on them. A 
day of rest would seem to be appointed by nature ; and I 
make no doubt we have filled up all the sooner for having 
observed one. Seamen have so many calls on their time 
which cannot be neglected, that it is unwise in them to 
iucrease the number unnecessarily.” 

“ This is not the spirit, Captain Gar’ner, I ’m sorry to 
say, in which we should keep our day of rest, though it is 
well that we keep it at all. I ’m no stickler for houses and 
congregations, though they are good enough in their times 
and seasons ; for every man has a tabernacle in his own 
heart, if he ’s disposed to worship.” 

“ And if any place on earth can particularly incline one 
to worship God, surely it must be some such spot as this !” 
exclaimed Roswell, with a degree of fervor it was not 
usual for him to exhibit. “Never in my life have my eyes 
seen a sight as remarkable and as glorious as this ! ” 

Well might our young mariner thus exclaim. The day 
was fine for the region, but marked by the caprice and 
changeful light of high latitudes. There was mist in 
places, and flurries of snow were to be seen to the south- 
ward, while the ocean to the northward of the group was 
glittering under the brightness of an unclouded sun. It 
was the mixed character of this scene that rendered it so 
peculiar, while its grandeur, sublimity, and even beauty, 
were found in its vastness, its noble though wild accesso- 


254 


THE SEA LIONS. 


lies, its frozen and floating mountains, glowing in prismatia 
iight, and the play of summer on the features of an ant- 
arctic view. 

“ ’T is a remarkable spot, as no one can deny,” answered 
Daggett ; “ but I like its abundance of seal the most of 
all. I cannbt say I have much taste for sights, unless they 
bring the promise of good profit with them. We Vine- 
yarders live in a small way, and are not rich enough to 
take delight in landscapes.” 

“ Serve God, and reverence his holy name,” said Stim- 
son, earnestly, “ and all places will be good to look upon. 
I have been on the Vineyard in my time, and have never 
found any difference as to the spot, so long as the heart is 
right.” 

“ A poor man must work,” answered Daggett, dropping 
his eyes from the more distant 'and gorgeous views of the 
drifting ice-mountains, to the rocky shore, that was still 
frequented by thousands of seals, some of the largest of 
which might be seen, even from that elevation, waddling 
about ; “ ay, a poor man must work, Sundays or no Sun- 
days ; and he who would make his hay, must do it while 
the sun shines. I like meetin’-goin’ at the right place, and 
sealin’ when sealin’ ought to be done. This day is lost, I 
fear, and I hope we shall not have reason to regret it.” 

Stimson did not abandon what he conceived to be his 
duty, but answered this cold, worldly spirit in the best 
manner his uncultivated speech enabled him to do. But 
his words were thrown away on Daggett. The lust of gold 
was strong within him ; and while that has full dominion 
over the heart, it is vain to expect that any purely spiritual 
fruits will ripen there. Daggett was an instance of what, 
we fear, many thousands resembling him might be found, 
up and down the land, of a man energetic by temperament, 
industrious by habit, and even moderate in his views, but 
whose whole existence is concentrated in the accumulation 
of property. Born poor, and in a state of society in which 
no one other generally recognized mode of distinction is so 
universally acknowledged as that of the possession of 
money, it is not surprising that a man of his native disposi* 


THE SEA LIONS. 


255 


tion should early bend all his faculties to this one great 
object. He was not a miser, like Deacon Pratt, for he 
could spend freely, on occasion, and perfectly understood 
the necessity of making liberal outfits to insure ample re- 
turus ; but he lived for little else than for gain. What 
such a man might have become under more favorable aus- 
pices, and with different desires instilled into his youthful 
mind, it is not easy to say ; it is only certain that, as he 
was, the steel-trap is not quicker to spring at the touch, 
than he was to arouse all his manifold energies at the 
hopes or promise of profit. As his whole life had been 
passed in one calling, it was but natural that his thoughts 
should most easily revert to the returns that calling had so 
often given. He never dreamed of speculations, knew 
nothing of stocks, had no concern with manufactures in 
cotton or wool, nor had any other notion of wealth than 
the possession of a good farm on the Vineyard, a reason- 
able amount of money “ at use,” certain interests in coast- 
ers, whalers, and sealers, and a sufficiency of household 
effects, and this in a very modest way, to make himself and 
family comfortable. Notwithstanding this seeming moder 
ation, Daggett was an intensely covetous man ; but his 
wishes were limited by his habits. 

While one of the masters of the sealing crafts was draw- 
ing these pictures, in his imagination, of wealth after his 
manner, very different were the thoughts of the other. 
Roswell’s fancy carried him far across that blue and spark- 
ling ocean, northward, to Oyster Pond, and Deacon Pratt’s 
homestead, and to Mary. He saw the last in her single- 
hearted simplicity, her maiden modesty, her youthful beauty, 
— nay, even in her unyielding piety ; for, singular as it may 
seem, Gardiner valued his mistress so much the more for 
that very faith to which, in his own person, he laid no claim. 
Irreligious he was not, himself, though skeptical on the one 
great tenet of Christianity. But, in Mary, it struck him it 
was right that she should believe that which she had been 
so sedulously taught ; for he did not at all fancy those in- 
quiring minds, in the other sex, that lead their possessors 
in quest of novelties and paradoxes. In this humor, then, 


256 


THE SEA LIONS. 


the reader will not be surprised to hear that he imagined 
the deacon’s niece in her most pleasing attributes, and be- 
decked her with all those charms that render maidens pleas- 
ant to youthful lovers. Had Mary been less devout, less 
fixed in her belief that Jesus was the Son of God, strange 
as it may seem, the skeptical young man would have loved 
her less. 

And what was that rugged, uncultivated seaman, who 
stood near the two officers, thinking of, all this time ? Did 
he, too, bend his thoughts* on love, and profit, and the pleas- 
ures of this world ? Of love, most truly, was his heart full 
to overflowing ; but it was the love of God, with that affec- 
tion for all his creatures, that benevolence and faith, which 
glow as warmly in the hearts of the humblest and least ed- 
ucated, as in those of the great and learned. His mind 
was turned towards his Creator, and it converted the extraor- 
dinary view that lay before his sight into a vast, magnifi- 
cent, gorgeous, though wild temple, for his worship and 
honor. It might be well for all of us occasionally to pause 
in our eager pursuit of worldly objects, and look around on 
the world itself, considering it as but a particle in the 
illimitable fields of creation, — one among the many thou- 
sands of other known worlds, that have been set in their 
places in honor of the hand that made them. These brief 
but vivid glances at the immensity of the moral space wdiich 
separates man from his Deity, have very healthful effects 
in inculcating that humility which is the stepping-stone of 
faith and love. 

After passing an hour on the bald cap of the mountain, 
sometimes conversing, at others ruminating on the scene, 
a change in the weather induced our party to move. There 
had been flurries of snow visible all the morning, but it 
was in the distance, and among the glittering bergs. Once 
the volcano had thus been shut in from view ; but now a 
driving cloud passed over the mountain itself, which was 
quickly as white as the pure element could make it. So 
heavy was the fall of snow, that it was soon impossible to 
see a dozen yards, and of course the whole of the plain of 
the island was concealed. At this most inauspicious mo- 
ment, our adventurers undertook their descent. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


257 


It is always much less dangerous to mount an acclivity 
than to go down it. The upward progress is easily enough 
arrested, while that in the other direction is frequently too 
rapid to be under perfect command. Rowell felt the truth 
of this, and would have proposed a delay until the atmos- 
phere became clear again, but it struck him that this was 
not likely to occur very soon. He followed Daggett, there- 
fore, though reluctantly, and with due caution^ Stimson 
brought up the rear. 

For the first ten minutes our adventurers got along with- 
out any great difficulty. They found the precise point at 
which they had reached the summit of the mountain, and 
began to descend. It was soon apparent that great caution 
must be used, the snow rendering the footing slippery. 
Daggett, however, was a bold and hot-blooded man when 
in motion, and he preceded the party some little distance, 
calling out to those behind him to come on without fear 
This the last did, though it was with a good deal more 
caution than was observed by their leader. At length, all 
three reached a spot where it seemed they could not over- 
come the difficulties. Beneath them was the smooth face 
of a rock already covered with snow, while they could not 
see far enough in advance to ascertain in what this inclined 
plane terminated. Daggett, however, insisted that he knew 
the spot ; that they had passed up it. There was a broad 
shelf a short distance below them ; and once on that shelf, 
it would be necessary to make a considerable circuit in 
order to reach a certain ravine, down which the path would 
be reasonably easy. All remembered the shelf and the 
ravine ; the question was merely whether* the first lay be- 
neath them, and as near as Daggett supposed. A mistaken 
confidence beset the last, and he carried this feeling so far 
as to decline taking an end of a line which Roswell threw 
to him, but seated himself on the snow and slid downward, 
passing almost immediately out of sight. 

“ What has become of him ? ” demanded Roswell, en- 
deavoring to pierce the air by straining his eye-balls. u He 
is not to be seen ! ” 

17 


'258 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Hold on to the line, sir, and give me the other end of 
it ; I will go and see,” answered Stimson. 

It being obviously the most hazardous to remain to the 
last, and descend without the support of one above him, 
Roswell acquiesced in this proposal, lowering the boat- 
steerer down the rock, until he too was hid from his sight. 
Bat, though out of sight in that dense snow-storm, Stimson 
was not so distant as to be beyond the reach of the voice. 

“ Go more to the right, sir,” called out the seaman, “ and 
steady me with the line along with you.” 

This was done, the walking being sufficiently secure at 
the elevation where Roswell was. Presently, Stimson shook 
the line, and called out again. 

“ That will do, Captain Gar’ner,” he said. “ I am on 
the shelf now, and have pretty good footing. Lay the line 
down on the snow, sir, and slide as slowly as you can ; 
mind and keep close at its side. I ’ll stand by to fetch you 
up.” 

Gardiner understood all this perfectly, and did as he was 
desired to do. By keeping near the line he reached the 
shelf precisely at the spot where Stimson was ready to meet 
him ; the latter arresting his downward movement by throw 
ing the weight of his own body forward to meet his officer. 
By such a precaution Roswell was stopped in time, else 
would he have gone over the shelf, and down a declivity 
that was so nearly perpendicular as to offer no means of 
arresting the movement. 

“ And what has become of Captain Daggett ? ” demanded 
Gardiner, as soon as on his feet again. 

“ I fear he has shot off the rock, sir,” was the answer. 
“ At the place where I reached this shelf, it was so narrow 
I could with great difficulty walk — could not, indeed, had 
not the line been there to steady me ; and, judging from 
the marks in the snow, the poor man has gone down help- 
less ! ” 

This was appalling intelligence to receive at such a time, 
and in such a place ! But Roswell was not unmanned by 
it ; on the contrary, he acted coolly and with great judg- 
ment. Making a coil of the ratlin-stuff, he threw the line 


THE SEA LIONS. 


259 


down until certain it reached bottom, at the distance of 
about six fathoms. Then he caused Stimson to brace him- 
self firmly, holding on to the line, aided by a turn round 
a rise in the rock, and he boldly lowered himself down the 
precipice, reaching its base at about the distance he had 
calculated so to do. 

It still snowed violently, the flakes being large, and eddy- 
ing round the angles of the rocks, in flurries so violent as, 
at moments, to confound all the senses of the young man. 
He was resolute, however, and bent on an object of human- 
ity, as well as of good fellowship. Living or dead, Daggett 
must be somewhere on his present level ; and he began to 
grope his way among the fragments of rock, eager and so- 
licitous. The roaring of the wind almost prevented his 
hearing other sounds ; though once or twice he heard, or 
fancied that he heard, the shouts of Stimson from above. 
Suddenly, the wind ceased, the snow lessened in quantity, 
soon clearing away altogether; and the rays of the sun — ■ 
and this in the dog-days of that region, be it remembered 
— fell bright and genial on the glittering scene. At the 
next instant, the eyes of lioswell fell on the object of his 
search. 

Daggett had been carried over the narrow shelf on which 
Stimson landed, in consequence of his having no support, 
or any means of arresting his momentum. He did thrust 
forward his lance, or leaping-staff ; but its point met noth- 
ing but air. The fall, however, was by no means perpen- 
dicular, several projections of the rocks helping to lessen 
it ; though it is probable that the life of the unfortunate 
sealer was saved altogether by means of the lance. This 
was beneath him as he made his final descent, and he slid 
along it the whole length, canting him into a spot where 
was the only piece of stinted vegetation that was to be seen 
for a considerable distance. In consequence of coming 
down on a tolerably thick bunch of furze, the fall was es- 
sentially broken. 

When Roswell reached his unfortunate companion, the 
latter was perfectly sensible, and quite cool. 

“ God be thanked that you have found me, Gar’ner,” he 
said ; “ at one time I had given it up.” 


260 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Thank God, also, that you are living, ray friend,” an- 
swered the other. “ I expected only to find your body ; 
but you do not seem to be much hurt.” 

“ More than appears, Gar’ner ; more than appears. My 
left leg is broken, certainly ; and one of my shoulders pains 
me a good deal, though it is neither out of joint or broken. 
This is a sad business for a sealing v’y’ge ! ” 

“ Give yourself no concern about your craft, Daggett — 
I will look to her, and to your voyage.” 

“ Will you stand by the schooner, Gar’ner ? — Promise 
me that, and my mind will be at peace.” 

“ I do promise. The two vessels shall stick together, 
at all events, until we are clear of the ice.” 

“ Ay, but that won’t do. My Sea Lion must be 'filled 
up as well as your own. Promise me that.” 

“ It shall be done, God willing. But here comes Stim- 
son ; the first thing will be to get you out of this spot.” 

Daggett was obviously relieved by Roswell’s pledges ; 
for, amid the anguish and apprehensions of his unexpected 
state, his thoughts had most keenly adverted to his vessel 
and her fortunes. Now that his mind was somewhat re- 
lieved on this score, the pains of his body became more 
sensibly felt. The situation of our party was sufficiently 
embarrassing. The leg of Daggett was certainly broken, 
a little distance above his ankle ; and various bruises in 
other places, gave notice of the existence of other injuries. 
To do anything with the poor man, lying where he was, 
was out of the question, however; and the first thing was 
to remove the sufferer to a more eligible position. Fortu- 
nately it was no great distance to the foot of the mountain, 
and a low level piece of rock was accessible by means of 
care and steady feet. Daggett was raised between Roswell 
and Stimson in a sitting attitude, and supporting himself 
by putting an arm around the neck of each. The legs 
hung down, the broken as well as the sound limb. To this 
accidental circumstance the sufferer was indebted to a piece 
of incidental surgery that proved of infinite service to him. 
While dangling in this manner the bone got into its place, 
and Daggett instantly became aware of that important fact. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


261 


which was immediately communicated to Roswell. Of 
course the future mode of proceeding was regulated by this 
agreeable piece of information. 

Sailors are often required to act as physicians, surgeons, 
and priests. It is hot often that they excel in either ca- 
pacity ; but, in consequence of the many things they are 
called to turn their hands to, it does generally happen 
that they get to possess a certain amount of address that 
renders them far more dexterous in nearly everything they 
undertake, than the generality of those who are equally 
strangers to the particular act that is thus to be exercised. 
Roswell had set one or two limbs already, and had a toler- 
able notion of the manner of treating the case. Daggett 
was now seated on a rock at the base of the mountain, with 
his legs still hanging down, and his back supported by an- 
other rock. No sooner was he thus placed, than Stimson 
was dispatched, post-haste, for assistance. His instructions 
were full, and the honest fellow set off at a rate that prom- 
ised as early relief as the circumstances would at all allow. 

As for our hero, he set about his most important office 
the instant Stimson left him. Daggett aided with his coun- 
sel, and a little by his personal exertions ; for a seaman 
does not lie down passively, when anything can be done, 
even in his own case. 

Baring the limb, Roswell soon satisfied himself that the 
bone had worked itself into place. Bandages were instantly 
applied to keep it there while splints were making. It was, 
perhaps, a little characteristic that Daggett took out his 
knife, and aided in shaving down these splints to the nec- 
essary form and thickness. They were made out of the 
staff of the broken lance, and were soon completed. Ros- 
well manifested a good deal of dexterity and judgment in 
applying the splints. The handkerchiefs were used to re 
lieve the pressure in places, and rope-yarns from the ratlin 
stuff furnished the means of securing everything in its 
place. In half an hour, Roswell had his job completed, 
and that before there was much swelling to interfere with 
him. As soon as the broken limb was thus attended to, it 
was carefully raised, and laid upon the rock along with its 


262 


THE SEA LIONS. 


fellow, a horizontal position being deemed better than one 
that was perpendicular. 

Not less than four painful hours now passed, ere the 
gang of hands from the vessels reached the base of the 
mountain. It came prepared, however, to transport the 
sufferer on a hand-barrow that had been used in conveying 
the skins of seal across the rocks. On this barrow Daggett 
was now carefully placed, when four men lifted him up, 
and walked away with him for a few hundred yards. These 
were then relieved by four more ; and in this manner was 
the whole distance to the house passed over. The patient 
was put in his bunk, and some attention was bestowed on 
his bruises and other injuries. 

G-lad enough was the sufferer to find himself beneath a 
roof, a»d in a room that had its comforts ; or what were 
deemed comforts on a sealing voyage. As the men were 
in the dormitory very little of the time except at night, he 
was enabled to sleep ; and Roswell had hopes, as he now 
told Stimson, that a month or six weeks would set the pa- 
tient on his feet again. 

“ He has been a fortunate fellow, Stephen, that it was 
no worse,” added Roswell, on that occasion. “ But for the 
luck which turned the lance-pole beneath hinj, every bone 
he has would have been broken.” 

“ What you call luck , Captain Gar’ner, I call Provi- 
dence ,” was Stephen’s answer. “The good book tells us 
that not a sparrow shall fall without the eye of Divine 
Providence being on it.” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


262 


CHAPTER XVIII. 

Now far he sweeps, where scarce a summer smiles, 

On Bhering’s rocks, or Greenland’s naked isles; 

Cold on his midnight watch the breezes blow, 

From wastes that slumber in eternal snow, 

And waft across the waves’ tumultuous roar, 

The wolfs long howl from Oonalaska’s shore. 

Campbell 

Roswell Gardiner set about bis duties the succeed- 
ing day, with a shade of deep reflection on his brow. A 
crisis had, indeed, come in his affairs, and it behooved him 
to look well to his proceedings. Daggett's presence on 
the island was no longer of any moment to himself or his 
owner, but there remained the secret of the key, and of 
the buried treasure. Should the two schooners keep to- 
gether, how was he to acquit himself in that part of his duty, 
without admitting of a partnership, against which he knew 
that every fibre in the deacon’s system, whether physical 
or moral, would revolt. Still, his word was pledged, and 
he had no choice but to remain, and help fill up the rival 
Sea Lion, and trust to his own address in getting rid of her 
again, as the two vessels proceeded north. 

The chief mate of Daggett’s craft, though a good 
sealer, was an impetuous and reckless man, and had more 
than once found fault with the great precautions used by 
the orders of Roswell. Macy, as this officer was called, 
was for making a regular onslaught upon the animals, slay- 
ing as many as they could at once, and then take up the 
business of curing and trying-out as a regular job. He 
had seen such things done with success, and he believed it 
was the most secure mode of getting along. “ Some of 
these fine mornings,” as he expressed it, “ Captain Gar’- 
ner would turn out, and find that his herd was off — gone 


* 


264 


THE SEA LIONS. 


to pasture in some other field.” This was a view of tho 
matter with which Roswell did not at all agree. His ior- 
bearing and cautious policy had produced excellent results 
so far, and he hoped it would continue so to do, until both 
gchooners were full. On the morning when the men next 
went forth, he as leader of both crews, therefore, our young 
master renewed his admonitions, pointing out to the new- 
comers, in particular, the great necessity there was of using 
forbearance, and not to alarm the seals more than the 
work indispensably required. The usual number of “ Ay, 
ay’s, sir ! ”. were given in reply, and the gangs went along 
the rocks, seemingly in a good humor to obey these in- 
junctions. 

Circumstances, however, were by no means favorable to 
giving Roswell the same influence over the Vineyard men 
as he possessed over his own crew. He was a young com- 
mander, and this was his first voyage in that capacity, as 
all well knew ; then, there had been rivalry and compe- 
tition between the two crafts, which was a feeling not so 
easily removed ; next, Macy felt, and even intimated, that 
he was the lawful commander of his own schooner, in cases 
in which Daggett was disabled, and that the latter had no 
power to transfer him and his people to the authority of 
any other individual. All these points were discussed that 
day, with some freedom, particularly among the Vineyard 
men, and especially the last. 

Wisely has it been said that “ the king’s name is a tower 
of strength.” They who have the law on their side, carry 
with them a weight of authority that it is not easy to 
shake by means of pure reasoning on right or wrong. Men 
are much inclined to defer to those who are thus armed, 
legal control being ordinarily quite as effective in achieving 
a victory, as having one’s “ quarrel just.” In a certain 
sense, authority indeed becomes justice, and we look to its 
proper exercise as one of the surest means of asserting 
what “ is right between man and man.” 

“ The commodore says that the critturs are to be treated 
delicately,” said Macy, laughing, as he lanced his first seal 
that morning, a young one of the fur species ; “ so take up 


THE SEA LIONS. 265 

the pet, lads, and lay it in its cradle, while I go look for 
its mamma.” 

A shout of merriment succeeded this sally, and the men 
were only so much the more disposed to be rebellious and 
turbulent, in consequence of hearing so much freedom of 
remark in their officer. 

“ The child ’s in its cradle, Mr. Macy,” returned Jen- 
kins, who was a wag as well as the mate. “ In my judg- 
ment, the best mode of rocking it to sleep will be by 
knocking over all these grim chaps that are so plenty in 
our neighborhood.” 

“ Let ’em have it ! ” cried Macy, making an onset on an 
elephant, as he issued the order. In an instant, the rocks 
at that point of the island were a scene of excitement and 
confusion. Hazard, who was near at hand, succeeded in 
restraining his own people, but it really seemed as if the 
Vineyard men were mad. A great many seals were killed, 
it is true ; but twenty were frightened to take refuge in 
the ocean, where one was slain. All animals have their 
alarm cries, or, if not absolutely cries, signals that are un- 
derstood by themselves. Occasionally, one sees a herd, or 
a flock, take to its heels, or to its wings, without any ap- 
parent cause, but in obedience to some warning that is 
familiar to their instincts. Thus must it have been with 
the seals ; for the rocks were soon deserted, even at the 
distance of a league from the scene of slaughter, leaving 
Hazard and his gang literally with nothing to do, unless, 
indeed, they returned to complete some stowage that re- 
mained to be done, on board their own craft. 

“ I suppose you know, Mr. Macy, all this is contrary to 
orders,” said Hazard, as he was leading his own gang back 
towards the cove. “ You see I am obliged to go in and 
report.” 

“ Report and welcome ! ” was the answer. “ I have no 
commander but Captain Daggett ; and, by the way, if 
you see him, Hazard, just tell him we have made a glorious 
^ morning’s work of it.” 

“ Ay, ay ; you will have your hands full enough to- 
day, Macy ; but how will it be to-morrow ? ” 


266 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Why, just as it has been to-day. The devils must 
come up to blow, and we ’re sartain of ’em, somewhere 
along the shore. This day’s work is worth any two that 
I ’ve seen since I came upon the island.” 

“ Very true ; but what will to-morrow’s work be worth ? 
I will tell Captain- Daggett what you wish me to say, how- 
ever, and we will hear his opinion on the subject. In my 
judgment, he means to command his craft till she gets back 
to the Hole, legs or no legs.” 

Hazard went his way, shaking his head ominously as he 
proceeded. Nor was he much mistaken in what he ex- 
pected from Daggett’s anger. That experienced sealer 
sent for his mate, ancksoon gave him -to understand that he 
was yet his commander. Loose and neighborly as is usu- 
ally the discipline of one of these partnership vessels, there 
is commonly a man on board who is every way competent 
to assert the authority given him by the laws, as well as 
by his contract. Macy was sent for, rebuked, and menaced 
with degradation from his station, should he again presume 
to violate his orders. As commonly happens in cases of 
this nature, regrets were expressed by the offender, and 
future obedience promised. 

But the mischief was done. Sealing was no longer the 
regular, systematic pursuit it had been on that island, but 
had become precarious and changeful. At times, the men 
met with good success ; then days would occur in which 
not a single creature, of any of the different species, would 
be taken. The Vineyard schooner was not more than 
half full, and the season was fast drawing to a close. Ros- 
well was quite ready to sail, and he began to chafe a little 
under the extra hazards that were thus imposed on himself 
a«d his people. 

In the mean time, or fully three weeks after the occur- 
rence of the accident to Daggett, the injuries received by 
the wounded man were fast healing. The bones had knit, 
and the leg promised, in another t mouth, to become tolera- 
bly sound, if not as strong as it had been before the hurt. 
All the bruises were well, and the Captain of the Vine- 
yard craft was just beginning to move about a little on 


THE SEA LIONS. 


267 


crutches; a prodigious relief to one of his habits, after 
the confinement to the house. By dint of great care, he 
could work his way down on the shelf that stretched, like 
a terrace, for two hundred yards beneath the dwelling. 
Here he met Roswell, on the morning of the Sabbath, just 
three weeks after their unfortunate visit to the mountain. 
Each took his seat on a low point of rock, and they began 
to converse on theii* respective prospects, and on the con- 
dition of their vessels and crews. Stephen was near his 
officer, as usual. 

“ I believe Stimson was right in urging me to give the 
men their Sabbaths,” observed Gardiner, glancing round 
at the different groups, in which the men were washing, 
shaving r and otherwise getting rid of the impurities created 
by another week of toil. “ They begin anew, after a little 
res,t, with a better will, and steadier hands.” 

“ Yes, the Sabbath is a great privilege, especially to such 
as are on shore,” returned Daggett. “ At sea, I make no 
great account of it : a craft must jog along, high days or 
holidays.” 

“ Depend on it, the same account is kept of the day, 
Captain Daggett, in the great log-book above, whether a 
man is on or off soundings,” put in Stephen, who was priv- 
ileged ever to deliver his sentiments on such subjects. 

The Lord is God on the sea as on the land.” 

There was a pause ; for the solemn manner and undoubted 
sincerity of the speaker produced an impression on his com- 
panions, little given as they were to thinking deeply on 
things of that nature. Then Roswell renewed the discourse, 
turning it on a matter that had been seriously uppermost 
in his mind for several days. 

“ I wish to converse with you, Captain Daggett, about 
our prospects and chances,” he said. “ My schooner is full, 
as you know. We could do no more, if we stayed here 
another season. You are about half full, with a greatly 
diminished chance of filling up this summer. Mr. Macy’s 
attack on the seals has put you back a month, at least, and 
every day we shall find the animals less easy to take. The 
equinox is not very far off, and then, you know, we shall 


268 


THE SEA LIONS. 


get less and less sun, — so little, as to be of no great use 
to us. We want daylight to get through the ice, and we 
shall have a long hundred leagues of it between us and 
clear water, even were we to get under way to-morrow. 
Remember what a serious thing it would be to get caught 
up here, in so high a latitude, after the sun has left us ! ” 

“ I understand you, Gar’ner,” answered the other, quietly, 
though his manner denoted a sort of compelled resignation, 
rather than any cordial acquiescence in that which he be- 
lieved his brother master intended to propose. “ You ’re 
master of your own vessel; and I dare say Deacon Pra«t 
would be much rejoiced to see you coming in between 
Shelter Island and Oyster Pond. I ’m but a cripple, or 
I think the Vineyard craft would n’t be many days run 
astarn ! ” 

Roswell was provoked ; but his pride was touched also. 
Biting his lip, he was silent for a moment, w)ien he spoke 
very much to the point, but generously, and like a man. 

“ I ’ll tell you what it is, Daggett,*’ said our hero, “ good- 
fellowship is good-fellowship, an'd the flag is the flag. It 
is the duty of all us Yankee seamen to stand by the stripes ; 
and I hope I ’m as ready as another to do what I ought to 
do, in such a matter ; but my owner is a close calculator, 
and I am much inclined to think that he will care less for 
this sort of feeling than you and I. The deacon was never 
in blue water.” 

“ So I suppose. He has a charming daughter, I believe, 
Gar’ner ? ” 

“ You mean his niece, I suppose,” answered Roswell, 
coloring. “ The deacon never had any child himself, I 
believe, at least he has none living. Mary Pratt is his 
niece.” 

“ It ’s all the same — niece or daughter, she *s comely, 
and will be rich, I hear. Well, I am poor, and what is 
more, a cripple ! ” 

Roswell could have knocked his companion down, for 
he perfectly understood the character of the allusion ; but 
he had sufficient self-command to forbear saying anything 
that might betray how much he felt. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


269 


It is always easier to work upon the sensitiveness of a 
spirited and generous-minded man, than to influence him 
l>y force or apprehensions. Roswell had never liked the 
idea of leaving Daggett behind him, at that season, and in 
that latitude ; and he relished it still less, now that he saw 
a false reason might be attributed to his conduct. 

“ You certainly do not dream of wintering here, Captain 
Daggett?” he said, after a pause. 

“ Not if 1 can help it. But the schooner can never go 
back to the Vineyard without a full hold. The very women 
would make the island too hot for us in such a case. Do 
your duty by Deacon Pratt, Gar’ner, and leave me here to 
get along as well as I can. I shall be able to walk a little 
in a fortnight ; and, in a month, I hope to be well enough 
to get out among the people, and regulate their sealing a 
little myfcelf. Mr. Macy will be more moderate with my 
eye on him.” 

“ A month ! He who stays here another month may 
almost make up his mind to stay eight more of them ; if, 
indeed, he ever get away from the group at all ! ” 

“ A late start is better than a half-empty vessel. When 
you get in to Oyster Pond, Gar’ner, I hope you will send a 
line across to the Vineyard, and tell ’em all about us.” 

Another long and brooding pause succeeded, during 
which Roswell’s mind was made up. 

“ I will do this with you, Daggett,” he said, speaking 
like one who had fully decided on his course. “ Twenty 
days longer will I remain here, and help to make out your 
cargo ; after which I sail, whether you get another skiu or a 
thousand. This will be remaining as long as any prudent 
man ought to stay in so high a latitude.” 

“ Give me your hand, Gar’ner. I knew you had tho 
clear stuff in you, and that it would make itself seen at the 
proper moment. I trust that Providence will favor us — 
it ’s really a pity to lose as fine a day as this ; especially as 
the crittur’s are coming up on the rocks to bask, something 
like old times ! ” 

“ You ’ll gain no great help from that Providence you 
just spoke of, Captain Daggett, by forgetting to keep ‘ Holy 


270 


THE SEA LIONS. 


the Sabbath,* said Stimson, earnestly. “ Try forbearance 
a little, and find the good that will come of it.” 

“ He is right,” said Roswell, “ as I know from having 
done as he advises. Well, our bargain is made. For 
twenty days longer I stay here, helping you to fill up. 
That will bring us close upon the equinox, when I shall 
get to the northward as fast as I can. In that time, too, I 
think you will be able to return to duty.” 

This, then, was the settled arrangement. Roswell felt 
that he conceded more than he ought to do ; but the feel- 
ing of good-fellowship was active within him, and he was 
strongly averse to doing anything that might wear the ap- 
pearance of abandoning a companion in his difficulties. All 
this time our hero was fully aware that he was befriending 
a competitor ; and he was not without his suspicions that 
Daggett wished to keep him within his view until the visit 
had been paid to the key. Nevertheless, Roswell’s mind 
was made up. He would remain the twenty days, and do 
all he could in that time to help along the voyage of the 
Vineyarders. 

The sealing was now continued with more order and 
method than had been observed under Macy’s control. 
The old caution was respected, and the work prospered in 
proportion. Each night, on his return to the house, Gardi- 
ner had a good report to make ; and that peculiar snap- 
ping of the eye, that denoted Daggett’s interest in his 
calling, was to be again traced in the expression of the 
Vineyarder’s features ; a certain proof that he was fast fall- 
ing into his old train of thought and feeling. Daggett was 
neveT happier than when listening to some account of the 
manner in which an old elephant or lion had been taken, 
or a number of fur-seals had been made to pay their tribute 
to the enterprise and address of his people. 

As for Roswell, though he complied with his promise, 
and carried on the duty with industry and success, his eye 
was constantly turned on those signs that denote the ad- 
vance of the seasons. Now he scanned the ocean to the 
northward, and noted the diminished number as well as 
lessened size of the floating bergs ; proofs that the summer 


THE SEA LIONS. 


271 


and the waves had been at work on their sides. Next, his 
look was on the sun, which was making his daily course, 
lower and lower, each time that he appeared, settling rapidly 
away towards the north, as if in haste to quit a hemisphere 
that was so little congenial to his character. The nights, 
always cool in that region, began to menace frost ; and the 
signs of the decline of the year that come so much later in 
more temperate climates, began to make themselves appar- 
ent here. It is true, that of vegetation there was so little, 
and that little so meagre and of so hardy a nature, that in 
this respect the progress of the seasons was not to be par- 
ticularly noted ; but, in all others, Roswell saw with grow- 
ing uneasiness that the latest hour of his departure was 
fast drawing near. 

The sealing went on the while, and with reasonable re- 
turns, though the golden days of the business had been 
seriously interrupted by Macy’s indiscretion and disobe- 
dience. The men worked hard, for they too foresaw the 
approach of the long night of the antarctic circle, and all 
the risk of remaining too long. As we have had frequent 
occasion to use the term “ antarctic,” it may be well here 
to say a few words in explanation. It is not our wish to 
be understood that these sealers had penetrated literally 
within that belt of eternal snows and ice, but approxima- 
tively. Few navigators, so far as our knowledge extends, 
have absolutely gone as far south as this. Wilkes did it, 
it is true ; and others among the late explorers have been 
equally enterprising and successful. The group visited by 
Gardiner on this occasion was quite near to this imaginary 
line ; but we do not feel at liberty precisely to give its 
latitude and longitude. To this hour it remains a species 
of private property,; and in this age of anti-rentism and 
other audacious innovations cn long-received and venerable 
rules of conduct, we do not choose to be parties to any 
inroads on the rights of individuals when invaded by the 
cupidity and ruthless power of numbers. Those who wish 
to imitate Roswell must find the islands by bold adventure 
as he reached them ; for we are tougue-tied on the subject. 
It is enough, therefore, that we say the group is near the 


272 


THE SEA LIONS. 


antaratic circle ; whether a little north or a little south 
of it, is a matter of no moment. As those seas have a 
general character, we shall continue to call them the ant- 
arctic seas ; with the understanding that, included in the 
term, are the nearest waters without as well as within the 
circle. 

Glad enough was Roswell Gardiner when his twenty 
days were up. March was now far advanced, and the 
approach of the long nights was near. The Vineyard 
craft was not full, nor was Daggett yet able to walk with- 
out a crutch ; but orders were issued by Gardiner, on the 
evening of the last day r for his own crew to “ knock off 
sealing,” and to prepare to get under way for home. 

“ Your mind is made up, Gar’ner,” said Daggett, in a 
deprecating sort of way, as if he still had latent hopes of 
persuading his brother-master to remain a little longer. 
“ Another week would almost fill us up.” 

“ Not another day,” was the answer. “ I have stayed 
too long already, and shall be off in the morning. If you 
will take my advice, Captain Daggett, you will do the same 
thing. Winter comes in this latitude very much as spring 
appears in our own , or with a hop, skip, and a jump. I 
have no fancy to be groping about among the ice, after the 
nights get to be longer than the days ! ” 

“ All true enough, Gar’ner ; all quite true — but it has 
such a look to take a craft home, and she not full ! ” 

“ You have a great abundance of provisions; stop and 
whale a while on the False Banks, as you go north. I 
would much rather stick by you there a whole montl), than 
remain here another day.” 

“ You make me narvous, talking of the group in this 
way ! I ’m sartain that this bay must remain clear of ice 
several weeks longer.” 

“ Perhaps it may ; it is more likely to be so than to 
freeze up. But this will not lengthen the days and carry 
us safe through the fields and bergs that we know are drift- 
ing about out here to the northward. There ’s a hundred 
leagues of ocean thereaway, Daggett, that I care for more 
just now, than for all the seal that are left on these islands. 


THE SEA LIONS. 273 

But talking is useless; I go to-morrow; if you are wise, 
you will sail in company.” 

This settled the matter. Daggett well knew it would be 
useless to remain without the aid of Roswell’s counsel, and 
that of his crew’s hands; for Macy was not to be trusted 
any more as the leader of a gang of sealers. The man had 
got to be provoked and reckless, and had called down upon 
himself latterly more than one rebuke. It was necessary, 
therefore, that one of the Sea Lions should accompany the 
other. The necessary orders were issued accordingly, and 
“ hey for home ! ” were the words that now cheerfully 
passed from mouth to mouth. That pleasant idea of 
“ home,” in which is concentrated all that is blessed in this 
life, the pale of the Christian duties and charities ex- 
cepted, brings to each mind its particular forms of happi- 
ness and good. The weather-beaten seaman, the foot-worn 
soldier, the weary traveler, the adventurer in whatever 
lands interest or pleasure may lead, equally feels a throb at 
his heart as he hears the welcome sounds of “ hey for 
home.” Never were craft prepared for sea with greater 
rapidity than was the case now with our two Sea Lions. 
It is true that the Oyster-Ponders were nearly ready, and 
had been quite so, for a fortnight ; but a good deal re- 
mained to be done among the Vineyarders. The last set 
themselves to their task with a hearty good-will, however, 
and with corresponding results. 

“ We will leave the house standing for them that come 
after us,” said Roswell, when the last article belonging to 
his schooner was taken out of it. “ The deacon has 
crammed us so full of wood that I shall be tempted to 
throw half of it overboard, now we have so much cargo. 
Let all stand, Hazard, bunks, planks, and all ; for really 
we have no room for the materials. Even this wood,” 
pointing to a pile of several cords that had been landed 
already to make room for skins and casks that had been 
brought out in shocks, “ must go to the next comer. Per- 
haps it may be one of ourselves ; for we sailors never 
know what port will next fetch us up.” 

“ I hope it will be old Sag, sir,” answered Hazard, cheer- 
18 


274 


THE SEA LIONS. 


fully ; “ for, though no great matter of a seaport, it is near 
every man’s home, and may be called a sort of door-way to 
go in and out of the country through.” 

u A side-door, at the best,” answered Roswell. “ With 
you, I trust it will be the next haven that we enter ; though 
I shall take the schooner at once in behind Shelter Island, 
and tie her up to the deacon’s wharf.” 

What images of the past and future did these few jocu 
lar words awaken in the mind of our young sealer ! He 
fancied that he saw Mary standing in the porch of her 
uncle’s habitation, a witness of the approach of the schoon- 
er, looking wistfully at the still indistinct images of those 
who were to be seen on her decks. Mary had often done 
this in her dreams ; again and again had she beheld the 
white sails of the Sea Lion driving across Gardiner’s Bay, 
and entering Peconic ; and often had she thus gazed in the 
weatherworn countenance of him who occupied so much of 
her thoughts — so many of her prayers — picturing through 
the mysterious images of sleep the object she so well loved 
when waking. 

And where was Mary Pratt at that day and hour when 
Roswell was thus issuing his last orders at Sealer’s Land ; 
and what was her occupation, and what her thoughts ? 
The difference in longitude between the group and Montauk 
was so trifling that the hour might be almost called identi- 
cal. Literally so, it was not ; but mainly so, it was. There 
were not the five degrees in difference that make the 
twenty minutes in time. More than this we are not per- 
mitted to say on this subject ; and this is quite enough to 
give the navigator a pretty near notion of the position of 
the group. As a degree of longitude measures less than 
twenty-eight statute miles at the polar circles, this is com- 
ing within a day’s run of the spot, so far as longitude is 
concerned ; and nearer than that we do not intend to carry 
the over-anxious reader, let his curiosity be as lively as it 
may. 

And where, then, was Mary Pratt ? Safe, well, and rea- 
sonably happy, in the house of her uncle, where she had 
passed most of her time since infancy. The female friends 


THE SEA LIONS. 


275 


of mariners have always fruitful sources of uneasiness in 
the pursuit itself ; but Mary had no other cause for concern 
of this nature than what was inseparable from so long a 
voyage, and the sea into which Roswell had gone. She 
well knew that the time was arrived when he was expected 
to be on his way home ; and as hope is an active and be- 
guiling feeling, she already fancied him to be much ad- 
vanced on his return. But a dialogue which took place 
that very day — nay, that very hour — between her and the 
deacon, will best explain her views and opinions, and ex- 
pectations. 

“ It ’s very extr’or’nary, Mary,” commenced the uncle, 
“ that Gar’ner doesn’t write ! If he only know’d how a 
man feels when his property is ten thousand miles off, I ’m 
sartain he would write, and not leave me with so many 
misgivings in the matter.” 

“ By whom is he to write, uncle ? ” answered the more 
considerate and reasonable niece. “ There are no post- 
offices in the antarctic seas, nor any travelers to bring 
letters by private hands.” 

“ But he did write once ; and plaguey good news was it 
that he sent us in that letter ! ” 

“ He did write from Rio, for there he had the means. 
By my calculations, Roswell has left his sealing ground 
some three or four weeks, and must now be as many thou- 
sand miles on his way home.” 

“ D ’ye think so, gal ? — d ’ye think so ? ” exclaimed the 
deacon, his eyes fairly twinkling with pleasure. “ That 
would be good news ; and if he does n’t stop too long by the 
way, we might look for him home in less than ninety days 
from this moment ! ” 

Mary smiled pensively, and a richer color stole into her 
cheeks, slowly but distinctly. 

“ I do not think, uncle, that Roswell Gardiner will be 
very likely to stop on his way to us here, on Oyster Pond,” 
was the answer she made. 

“ I should be sorry to think that. The best part of his 
v’y’ge may be made in the West Ingees, and I hope he is 
not a man to overlook his instructions.” . 


276 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Will Roswell be obliged to stop in the West Ind.ee. 
uncle ? ” 

“ Sartain — if he obeys his orders ; and I think the young 
man will do that. But the business there will not detain 
him long,” — Mary’s countenance brightened again, at this 
remark, — “ and, should you be right, we may still look for 
him in the next ninety days.” 

Mary remained silent for a short time, but her charming 
face was illuminated by an expression of heartfelt happiness, 
which, however, the next remark of her uncle’s had an ob- 
vious tendency to disturb. 

“ Should Gar’ner come home successful, Mary,” inquired 
the deacon, “ successful in all things — successful in sealing, 
and successful in that other matter — the West Ingees busi- 
ness, I mean — but successful in all, as I daily pray he may 
be, — I want to know if you would then have him ; always 
supposing that he got back himself unchanged ? ” 

“ Unchanged, I shall never be his wife,” answered Mary, 
tremulously, but firmly. 

The deacon looked at her in surprise ; for he had never 
comprehended but one reason why the orphan and penni- 
less Mary should refuse so pertinaciously to become the 
wife of Roswell Gardiner ; and that was his own want of 
means. Now the deacon loved Mary more than he was 
aware of himself, but he had never actually made up his 
mind to leave her the heiress of his estate. The idea of 
parting with property at all was too painful for him to 
think of making a will ; and without such an instrument, 
there were others who would have come in for a part of 
the assets, “share and share alike,” as the legal men express 
it. Of all this was the deacon fully aware and it occasion- 
ally troubled him ; more of late than formerly, since he felt 
in his system the unerring signs of decay. Once had he 
got so far as to write on a page of foolscap, “ In the name 
of God, Amen ; ” but the effort proved too great for him, and 
he abandoned the undertaking. Still Deacon Pratt loved 
his niece, and was well inclined to see her become the wife 
of “young Gar’ner,” more especially should the last return 
successful. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


27 " . 


“ Unchanged ! ” repeated the uncle, slowly ; “ you sar 
tainly would not wish to marry him, Mary, if he wa 
changed / ” 

“ I do not mean changed, in the sense you are thinking 
of, uncle. But we will not talk of this now. Why should 
Roswell stop in the West Indies at all ? It is not usual for 
our vessels to stop there.” 

“ No, it is not. If Gar ’ner stop at all, it will be on a 
very unusual business, and one that may make all our for- 
tunes — your’n, as well as his’n and mine, Mary.” 

“ I hope that sealers never meddle with the transporta- 
tion of slaves, uncle !” the girl exclaimed, with a face filled 
with apprehension. “ I would rather live and die poor, 
than have anything to do with them ! ” 

“ I see no such great harm in the trade, gal ; but such 
is not Roswell’s ar’nd in the West Ingees. It’s a great 
secret, the reason of his call there ; and I will venture to 
foretell that, should he make it, and should it turn out suc- 
cessful, you will marry him, gal.” 

Mary made no reply. Well was she assured that Ros- 
well had an advocate in her own heart, that was pleading 
for him, night and day ; but firm was her determination not 
to unite herself with one, however dear to her, who set up 
his own feeble understanding of the nature of the mediation 
between God and man, in opposition to the plainest language 
of revelation, as well as to the prevalent belief of the church, 
since the ages that immediately succeeded the Christian 
era. 


278 


THE SEA LIONS. 


CHAPTER XIX. 

Poor child of danger, nursling of the storm, 

Sad are the woes that wreck thy manly form ! 

Rocks, waves, and winds the shatter’d bark delay; 

Thy heart is sad, thy home is far away. 

Campbell. 

It w*s about mid-day, when the two Sea Lions opened 
their canvas, at the same moment, and prepared to quit 
Sealer’s Land. All hands were on board, every article was 
shipped for which there was room, and nothing remained 
that denoted the former presence of man on that dreary 
island, but the deserted house, and three or four piles of 
cord-wood, that had grown on Shelter Island and Martha’s 
Vineyard, and which was now abandond on the rock of 
the antarctic circle. As the topsails were sheeted home, 
and the heavy fore-and-aft mainsails were hoisted, the songs 
of the men sounded cheerful and animating. “ Home ” was 
in every tone, each movement, all the orders. Daggett was 
on deck, in full command, though still careful of his limb, 
while Roswell appeared to be everywhere. Mary Pratt 
was before his mind’s eye all that morning ; nor did he 
even once think how pleasant it would be to meet her 
uncle, with a “There, deacon, is your schooner, with a 
good cargo of elephant-oil, well chucked off with fur-seal 
skins.” 

The Oyster Pond craft was the first clear of the ground. 
The breeze was little felt in that cove, where usually it did 
not seem to blow at all, but there was wind enough to serve 
to cast the schooner, and she went slowly out of the rocky 
basin, under her mainsail, foretopsail, and jib. The wind 
was at southwest, — the nor’ wester of that hemisphere, — 
and it was fresh and howling enough, on the other side of 
the island. After Roswell had made a stretch out into the 


THE SEA LIONS. 


279 


bay of about a mile, he laid his foretopsail flat aback, hauled 
over his jib-sheet, and put his helm hard down, in waiting 
for the other schooner to come out and join him. In a 
quarter of an hour, Daggett got within hail. 

“ TV ell,” called out the last, “ you see I was right, Gar’- 
ner ; wind enough out here, and more, still farther from 
the land. We have only to push in among them bergs 
while it is light, pick out a clear spot, and heave-to during 
the night. It will hardly do for us to travel among so much 
ice in the dark.” 

“ I wish we had got out earlier, that we might have made 
a run of it by daylight,” answered Roswell. “ Ten hours 
of such a wind, in my judgment, would carry us well 
towards clear water.” 

“ The delay could not be helped. I had so many traps 
ashore, it took time to gather them together. Come, fill 
away, and let us be moving. Now we are under way, I’m 
in as great haste as you are yourself.” 

Roswell complied, and away the two schooners went, 
keeping quite near to each other, having smooth water, and 
still something of a moderated gale, in consequence of the 
proximity and weatherly position of the island. The course 
was towards a spot to leeward, where the largest opening 
appeared in the ice, and where it was hoped a passage to 
the northward would be found. The farther the two ves- 
sels got from the land, the more they felt the power of the 
wind, and the greater was their rate of running. Daggett 
soon found that he could spare his consort a good deal of 
canvas, a consequence of his not being full, and he took 
in his topsail, though, running nearly before the wind, his 
spar would have stood even a more severe strain. 

As the oldest mariner, it had been agreed between the 
two masters that Duggett should lead the way. This he 
did for an hour, when both vessels were fairly out of the 
great bay, clear of the group altogether, and running off 
northeasterly, at a rate of nearly ten knots in the hour. 
The sea got up as they receded from the land, and every- 
thing indicated a gale, though one of no great violence. 
Night was approaching, and an Alpine like range of ice- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


ZtfO 

berga vas glowing, to the northward, under the oblique 
rays of the setting sun. For a considerable space around 
the vessels, the water was clear, not even a cake of any sort 
being to be seen ; and the question arose in Daggett’s mind, 
whether he ought to stand on, or to heave-to and pass the 
night well to windward of the bergs. Time was precious, 
the wind was fair, the heavens clear, and the moon would 
make its appearance about nine, and might be expected to 
remain above the horizon until the return of day. This 
was one side of the picture. The other presented less 
agreeable points. The climate was so fickle, that the clear- 
ness of the skies was not to be depended on, especially with 
a strong southwest wind — a little gale, in fact ; and a 
change in this particular might be produced at any moment. 
Then it was certain that floes, and fragments of bergs, 
would be found near, if not absolutely among the sublime 
mountain-like piles that w'ere floating about, in a species 
of grand fleet, some twenty miles to leeward. Both of our 
masters, indeed all on board of each schooner, very well 
understood that the magnificent array of icy islands which 
lay before them was owing to the currents, for which it is 
not always easy to account. The clear space was to be 
attributed to the same cause, though there was little doubt 
that the wind, which had now been to the southward fully 
eight-and-forty hours, had contributed to drive the icy fleet 
to the northward. As a consequence of these facts, the 
field-ice must be in the vicinity of the bergs, and the em- 
barrassment from that source was known always to be very 
great. 

It required a good deal of nerve for a mariner to run in 
among dangers of the character just described, as the sun 
was setting. Nevertheless, Daggett did it; and Roswell 
Gardiner followed the movement, at the distance of about 
a cable’s length. To prevent separation, each schooner 
showed a light at the lower yard-arm, just as the day was 
giving out its last glimmerings. As yet, however, no diffi- 
culty was encountered ; the Alpine-looking range being yet 
quite two hours’ run still to leeward. Those two hours 
must be passed in darkness ; and Daggett shortened sail in 


THE SEA LIONS. 281 

order not to reach the ice before the moon rose. He 
had endeavored to profit by the light as long as it re- 
mained, to find a place at which he might venture to enter 
among the bergs, but had met with no great success. The 
opening first seen now appeared to be closed, either by 
means of the drift or by means of the change in the posi- 
tion of the vessels ; and he no longer thought of that. 
Fortune must be trusted to, in some measure; and on he 
went, Roswell always closely following. 

The early hours of that eventful night were intensely 
lark. Nevertheless, Daggett stood down towards the icy 
range, using no other precaution than shortening sail and 
keeping a sharp lookout. Every five minutes the call from 
the quarter-deck of each schooner to “ keep a bright look- 
out ” was heard, unless, indeed, Daggett or Roswell was on 
his own forecastle, thus occupied^ in person. No one on 
board of either vessel thought of sleep. The watch had 
been called, as is usual at sea, and one half of the crew 
was at liberty to go below and turn in. What was more, 
those small fore-and-aft rigged craft were readily enough 
handled by a single watch ; and this so much the more 
easily, now that their top-sails were in. Still, not a man 
left the deck. Anxiety was too prevalent for this, the 
least experienced hand in either crew being well aware that 
the next four-and-twenty hours would, in all human proba- 
bility, be decisive of the fate of the voyage. 

Both Daggett and Gardiner grew more and more uneasy 
as the time for the moon to rise drew near, without the orb 
of night making its appearance. A few clouds were driv- 
ing athwart the heavens, though the stars twinkled as usual, 
in their diminutive but sublime splendor. It was not so 
dark that objects could not be seen at a considerable dis- 
tance ; and the people of the schooners had no difficulty in 
very distinctly tracing, and that not very far ahead, the 
broken outlines of the chain of floating mountains. No 
Alpine pile, in very fact, could present a more regular or 
better defined range, and in some respects more fantastic 
outlines. When the bergs first break away from their 
native moorings, their forms are ordinarily somewhat regu- 


282 - 


THE SEA LIONS. 


lar ; the summits commonly resembling table-land. This 
regularity of shape, however, is soon lost under the rays of 
the summer sun, the wash of the ocean, and most of all by 
the wear of the torrents that gush out of their own frozen 
bosoms. A distinguished navigator of our own time has 
compared the appearance of these bergs, after their regu- 
larity of shape is lost, and they begin to assume the fantas- 
tic outlines that uniformly succeed, to that of a deserted 
town, built of the purest alabaster, with its edifices crum- 
bling under the seasons, and its countless unpeopled streets, 
avenues, and alleys. All who have seen the sight unite in 
describing it as one of the most remarkable that comes 
from the lavish hand of nature. 

About nine o’clock on the memorable night in question, 
there was a good deal of fog driving over the ocean to in- 
crease the obscurity. This rendered Daggett doubly cau- 
tious, and he actually hauled up close to the wind, heading 
off well to the westward, in order to avoid running in 
among the bergs, in greater uncertainty than the circum-' 
stances would seem to require. Of course Roswell fol- 
lowed the movement ; and when the moon first diffused its 
mild rays on the extraordinary scene, the two schooners 
were pitching into a heavy sea, within less than a mile of 
the weather-line of the range of bergs. It was soon appar- 
ent that floes or field ice accompanied the floating moun- 
tains, and extended so far to the southward of them as to 
be already within an inconvenient if not hazardous prox- 
imity to the two vessels. These floes, however, unlike 
those previously encountered, were much broken by the un- 
dulations of the waves, and seldom exceeded a quarter of a 
mile in diameter; while thousands of them were no larger 
than the ordinary drift ice of our own principal river in 
the time of a freshet. Their vicinity to the track of the 
schooners, indeed, was first ascertained by the noise they 
produced in grinding against each other, which soon made 
itself audible even above the roaring of the gale. 

Both of our masters now began to be exceedingly un- 
comfortable. It was soon quite apparent that Daggett had 
been too bold, and had led down towards the ice without 


THE SEA LIONS. 


283 


sufficient caution and foresight. As the moon rose, higher 
and higher, the difficulties and dangers to leeward became 
at each minute more and more apparent. Nothing could 
have been more magnificent than the scene which lay be- 
fore the eyes of the mariners, or would have produced a 
deeper feeling of delight, had it not been for the lively 
consciousness of the risk the two schooners and all who 
were in them unavoidably ran, by being so near and to 
windward of such an icy coast, if one may use the expres- 
sion as relates to floating bodies. By that light it was very 
easy to imagine Wilkes’s picture of a ruined town of ala- 
baster. There were arches of all sizes and orders ; pinna- 
cles without number ; towers, and even statues and columns. 
To these were to be added long lines of perpendicular 
walls, that it was easy enough to liken to fortresses, dun 
geons and temples. In a word, even the Alps, with all 
their peculiar grandeur, and certainly on a scale so vastly 
more enlarged, possess no one aspect that is so remarkable 
for its resemblance to the labors of man, composed of a 
material of the most beautiful transparency, and considered 
as the results of human ingenuity, on a scale so gigantic. 
The glaciers have often been likened, and not unjustly, to 
a frozen sea ; but here were congealed mountains seemingly 
hewed into all the forms of art, not by the chisel it is true, 
but by the action of the unerring laws which produced 
them. 

Perhaps Roswell Gardiner was the only individual in 
those two vessels that night who was fully alive to all the 
extraordinary magnificence of its unusual pictures. Ste- 
phen may, in some degree, have been an exception to the 
rule'; though he saw the hand of God in nearly all things. 
“It’s wonderful to look at, Captain Gar’ner, isn’t it?” said 
this worthy seaman, about the time the light of the moon 
began to tell on the view ; “ wonderful, truly, did we not 
know who made it all ! ” These few and simple words had 
a cheering influence on Roswell, and served to increase 
his confidence in eventual success. God did produce all 
things, either directly or indirectly ; this even his skeptical 
notions could allow ; and that which came from divine 


284 


THE SEA LIONS. 


wisdom must be intended for good. He would take cour- 
age, and for once in his life trust to Providence. The 
most resolute man by nature feels his courage augmented 
by such a resolution. 

The gales of, the antarctic sea are said to be short, though 
violent. They seldom last six-and-thirty hours, and for 
about a third of that time they blow with their greatest 
violence. As a matter of course, the danger amid the ice 
is much increased by a tempest ; though a good working, 
breeze, or small gale of wind, perhaps, adds to a vessel’s 
security, by rendering it easier to handle her, and to avoid 
floes and bergs. If the ice is sufficient to make a lee, 
smooth water is sometimes a consequence ; though it 
oftener happens that the turbulence produced in clear 
water is partially communicated over a vast surface, causing 
the fields and mountains to grind against each other under 
the resistless power of the waves. On the present occa- 
sion, however, the schooners were still in open water, where 
the wind had a long and unobstructed rake, and a sea had 
got up that caused both of the little craft to bury nearly 
to their gunwales. What rendered their situation still 
more unpleasant was the fact that all the water which came 
aboard of them now soon froze. To this, however, the men 
were accustomed, it frequently happening that the moisture 
deposited on their rigging and spars by the fogs froze dur- 
ing the nights of the autumn. Indeed, it has been thought 
' by some speculators on the subject, that the bergs them- 
selves are formed in part by a similar process, though snows 
undoubtedly are the principal element in their composition. 
This it is which gives the berg its stratified appearance, 
no geological formation being more apparent or regular in 
this particular than most of these floating mountains. 

About ten, the moon was well above the horizon ; the 
fog had been precipitated in dew upon the ice, where it 
congealed, and helped to arrest the progress of dissolution •, 
while the ocean became luminous for the hour, and objects 
comparatively distinct. Then it was that the seamen first 
got a clear insight into the awkwardness cf their situation. 
The bold are apt to be reckless in the dark ; but wheu 


THE SEA LIONS. 


285 


danger is "visible, their movements become more wary and 
better calculated than those of the timid. When Daggett 
got this first good look at the enormous masses of the field- 
ice, that, stirred by the unquiet ocean, were grinding each 
other, and raising an unceasing rushing sound like that the 
surf produces on a beach, though far louder, and with a 
harshness in it that denoted the collision of substances 
harder than water, he almost instinctively ordered every 
sheet to be flattened down, and the schooner’s head brought 
as near the wind as her construction permitted. Roswell 
observed the change in his consort’s line of sailing, slight 
as it was, and imitated the manoeuvre. The sea was too 
heavy to dream of tacking, and there was not room to wear. 
So close, indeed, were some of the cakes, those that might 
be called the stragglers of the grand array, that repeatedly 
each vessel brushed along so near them as actually to re- 
ceive slight shocks from collisions with projecting portions. 
It was obvious that the vessels were setting down upon the 
ice, and that Daggett did not haul his wind a moment too 
soon. 

The half-hour that succeeded was one of engrossing in- 
terest. It settled the point whether the schooners could or 
could not eat their way into the wind sufficiently to weather 
the danger. Fragment after fragment was passed ; blow 
after blow was received ; until suddenly the field-ice ap- 
peared directly in front. It was in vast quantities, extend- 
ing to the southward far as the eye could reach. There 
remained no alternative but to attempt to wear. Without 
waiting longer than to assure himself of the facts, Daggett 
ordered his helm put up and the main gaff lowered. At 
that moment both the schooners were under their jibs and 
foresails, each without its bonnet, and double-reefed main- 
sails. This was not canvas very favorable for wearing, 
there being too much after-sail ; but the sheets were at- 
tended to, and both vessels were soon driving dead to lee- 
ward, amid the foam of a large wave ; the next instant, ioe 
was heard grinding along their sides. 

It was not possible to haul up on the other tack ere the 
schooners would be surrounded by the floes ; and seeing a 


280 


THE SEA LIONS. 


comparatively open passage a short distance ahead, Daggett 
stood in boldly, followed closely by Roswell. In ten min- 
utes they were fully a mile within the field, rendering all 
attempts to get out of it to windward so hopeless as to be 
almost desperate. The manoeuvre of Daggett was begun 
under circumstances that scarcely admitted of any alterna- 
tive, though it might be questioned if it were not the best 
expedient that offered. Now that the schooners were so far 
within the field-ice, the water was much less broken, though 
the undulations of the restless ocean were still considerable, 
and the grinding of ice occasioned by them was really ter- 
rific. So loud was the noise produced by these constant 
and violent collisions, indeed, that the roaring of the wind 
was barely audible, and that only at intervals. The sound 
was rushing, like that of an incessant avalanche, attended 
by cracking noises that resembled the rending of a glacier. 

The schooners now took in their foresails, for the double 
purpose of diminishing their velocity and of being in a 
better condition to change their course, in order to avoid 
dangers ahead. These changes of course were necessarily 
frequent ; but, by dint of boldness, perseverance, and skill, 
Daggett worked his way into the comparatively open pas- 
sage already mentioned. It was a sort of river amfd the 
floes, caused doubtless by some of the inexplicable currents, 
and was fully a quarter of a mile in width, straight as an 
air-line, and of considerable length ; though how long could 
not be seen by moonlight. It led, moreover, directly down 
towards the bergs, then distant less than a mile. Without 
stopping to ascertain more, Daggett stood on, Roswell keep- 
ing close on his quarter. In ten minutes they drew quite 
near to that wild and magnificent ruined city of alabaster 
that was floating about in the antarctic sea ! 

Notwithstanding the imminent peril that now most se- 
riously menaced the two schqpners, it was not possible to 
approach that scene of natural grandeur without feelings 
of awe, that were allied quite as much to admiration as to 
dread. Apprehension certainly weighed on every heart ; 
but curiosity, wonder, even delight, were all mingled in the 
breasts of the crews. As the vessels came driving down 


THE SEA LIONS. 


287 


into the midst of the bergs, everything contributed to render 
the movements imposing in all senses, appalling in one. 
There lay the vast maze of floating mountains, generally 
of a spectral white at that hour, though many of the masses 
emitted hues more pleasing, while some were black as 
night. The passages between the bergs, or what might 
be termed the streets and lanes of this mysterious-looking, 
fantastical, yet sublime city of the ocean, were numerous, 
and of every variety. Some were broad, straight avenues, 
a league in length ; others winding and narrow; while a 
good many were little more than fissures, that might be 
fancied lanes. 

The schooners had not run a league within the bergs 
before they felt much less of the power of the gale, and the 
heaving and setting of the seas were sensibly diminished. 
What was, perhaps, not to be expected, the field-ice had 
disappeared entirely within the passages of the bergs, and 
the only difficulty in navigating was to keep in such chan- 
nels as had outlets, and which did not appear to be closing. 
The rate of sailing of the two schooners was now greatly 
lessened, the mountains usually intercepting the wind, 
though it was occasionally heard howling and scuffling in 
the ravines, as if in a hurry to escape, and pass on to the 
more open seas. The grinding of the ice, too, came down 
in the currents of air, furnishing fearful evidence of dan- 
gers that were not yet distant. As the water was now 
sufficiently smooth, and the wind, except at the mouths of 
particular ravines, was light, there was nothing to prevent 
the schooners from approaching each other. This was 
done, and the two masters held a discourse together on the 
subject of their present situation. 

“ You Ye a bold fellow, Daggett, and one I should not 
like to follow in a voyage round the world,” commenced 
Roswell “Here we are, in the midst of some hundreds 
of icebergs ; a glorious sight to behold, I must confess — 
but are we ever to get out again ?” 

“ It is much better to be here, Gar’ner,” returned the 
other, “ than to be among the floes. I ’m always afraid of 
my starn and my rudder when among the field-ice; whereas 


i 


288 


THE SEA LIONS. 


there is no danger hereabouts that cannot be seen before a 
vessel is on it. Give me my eyes, and I feel that I have 
a chance.” 

“ There is some truth in that ; but I wish these channels 
were a good deal wider than they are. A man may feel a 
berg as well as see it. Were two of these fellows to take 
it into their heads to close upon us, our little craft would 
be crushed like nuts in the crackers ! ” 

“We must keep a good lookout for that. Here seems 
to be a long bit of open passage ahead of us, and it leads 
as near north as we can wish to run. If we can only get 
to the other end of it, I shall feel as if half our passage 
back to Ameriky was made.” 

The citizen of the United States calls his country “ Amer- 
ica ” par excellence , never using the addition of “ North, as 
is practiced by most European people. Daggett meant 
“ home,” therefore, by his “ Ameriky,” in which he saw no 
other than the east end of Long Island, Gardiner’s Island, 
and Martha’s Vineyard. Roswell understood him, of course : 
so no breath was lost. 

“ In my judgment,” returned Gardiner, “ we shall not 
get clear of this ice for a thousand miles. Not that I ex- 
pect to be in a wilderness of it, as we are to-night ; but 
after such a summer, you may rely on it, Daggett, that the 
ice will get as far north as 45°, if not a few degress far- 
ther.” 

“ It is possible : I have seen it in 42° myself ; and in 
40° to the nor’ard of the equator. If it get as far as 50°, 
however, in this part of the world, it will do pretty well. 
That will be play to what we have just here — In the 
name of Divine Providence, what is that, Gar’ner ! ” 

Not a voice was heard in either vessel ; soarcely a 
breath was drawn ! A heavy, groaning sound had been 
instantly succeeded by such a plunge into the water, as 
might be imagined to succeed the fall of a fragment from 
Another planet. Then all the bergs near by began to rock 
is if agitated by an earthquake. This part of the picture 
was both grand and frightful. Many of those masses rose 
«ibove the sea more than two hundred feet perpendicularly 


THE SEA LIONS. 


289 


and showed wall -like surfaces of half a league in length. 
At the point where the schooners happened to be just at 
that moment, the ice islands were not so large, but quite as 
high, and consequently were more easily agitated. While 
the whole panorama was bowing and rocking, pinnacles, 
arches, walls, and all, seeming about to totter from their 
bases, there came a wave sweeping down the passage that 
lifted them high in the air, some fifty feet at least, and bore 
them along like pieces of cork, fully a hundred yards. 
Other waves succeeded, though of less height and force ; 
when, gradually, the water regained its former and more 
natural movement, and subsided. 

“ This has been an earthquake ! ” exclaimed Daggett. 
“ That volcano has been pent up, and the gas is stirring up 
the rocks beneath the sea.” 

“ No, sir,” answered Stimson, from the forecastle of his 
own schooner, “ it ’s not that, Captain Daggett. One of 
them bergs has turned over, like a whale wallowing, and it 
has set all the others a-rocking.” 

This was the true explanation ; one that did not occur 
to the less experienced sealers. It is a danger, however, 
of no rare occurrence in the ice, and one that ever needs 
to be looked to. The bergs, when they first break loose 
from their native moorings, which is done by the agency 
of frosts, as well as by the action of the seasons in the 
warm months, are usually tabular, and of regular outlines ; 
but this shape is soon lost by the action of the waves on 
ice of very different degrees of consistency ; some being 
composed of frozen snow ; some of the moisture precipi- 
tated from the atmosphere in the shape of fogs ; and some 
of pure frozen water. The first melts soonest ; and a berg 
that drifts for any length of time with one particular face 
exposed to the sun’s rays, soon loses its equilibrium, and 
is canted with an inclination to the horizon. Finally, the 
centre of gravity gets outside of the base, when the still 
monstrous mass rolls over in the ocean, coming literally 
bottom upwards. There are all degrees and varieties of 
these ice-slips, if one may so term them, and they bring 
in their train the many different commotions that such 
19 


290 


THE SEA LIONS. 


accidents would naturally produce. That which had just 
alarmed and astonished our navigators was of the following 
character. A mass of ice that was about a quarter of a 
mile in length, and of fully half that breadth, which floated 
quite two hundred feet above the surface of the water, and 
twice that thickness beneath it, was the cause of the disturb- 
ance. It had preserved its outlines unusually well, and 
stood upright to the last moment ; though owing to numer- 
ous strata of snow-ice, its base had melted much more on 
one of its sides than on the other. When the precise 
moment arrived that would have carried a perpendicular 
line from the centre of gravity without this base, the 
monster turned leisurely in its lair, producing some such 
effect as would have been wrought by the falling of a por- 
tion of a Swiss mountain into a lake ; a sort of accident of 
which there have been many and remarkable instances. 

Stimson’s explanation, while it raised the curtain from 
all that was mysterious, did not serve very much to quiet 
apprehensions. If one berg had performed such an evolu- 
tion, it was reasonable to suppose that others might do the 
same thing ; and the commotion made by this, which was 
at a distance, gave some insight into what might be ex- 
pected from a similar change in another nearer by. Both 
Daggett and Gardiner were of opinion that the fall of a 
berg of equal size within a cable’s length of the schooners 
might seriously endanger the vessels by dashing them 
against some wall of ice, if in no other manner. It was 
too lata, however, to retreat, and the vessels stood on gal- 
lantly. 

The passage between the bergs now became quite 
straight, reasonably broad, and was so situated as regarded 
the gale, as to receive 9, full current of its force. It was 
computed that the schooners ran quite three marine leagues 
in the hour that succeeded the overturning of the berg. 
There were moments when the wind blew furiously ; and, 
taking all the accessories of that remarkable view into the 
account, the scene resembled one that the imagination 
might present to the mind in its highest flights, but which 
few coull ever hope to see with their proper eyes. The 


THE SEA LIONS. 


291 


moonlight, the crowd of icebergs of all shapes and dimen- 
sions, seeming to flit past by the rapid movements of the 
vessels ; the variety of hues, from spectral white to tints 
of orange and emerald, pale at that hour yet distinct ; 
streets and lanes that were scarce opened ere they were 
passed ; together with all the fantastic images that such 
objects conjured to the thoughts ; contributed to make that 
hour much the most wonderful that Roswell Gardiner had 
ever passed. To add to the excitement, a couple of whales 
came blowing up the passage, coming within a hundred 
yards of the schooners. They were finbacks, which are 
rarely if ever taken, and were suffered to pass unharmed. 
To capture a whale, however, amid so many bergs, would 
be next to impossible, unless the animal were killed by the 
blow of the harpoon, without requiring the keener thrust 
of the lance. 

At the end of the hour mentioned, the Sea Lion of the 
Vineyard rapidly changed her course, hauling up by a sud- 
den movement to the westward. The passage before her 
was closed, and there remained but one visible outlet, to- 
wards which the schooner slowly made her way, having 
got rather too much to ^leeward of it, in consequence of 
not earlier seeing the necessity for the change of course in 
that dim and deceptive light. Roswell, being to windward, 
had less difficulty, but, notwithstanding, he kept his station 
on his consort’s quarter declining to lead. The passage into 
which Daggett barely succeeded in carrying his schooner 
was fearfully narrow, and appeared to be fast closing ; 
though it was much wider farther ahead, could the schoon- 
ers but get through the first dangerous strait. Roswell 
remonstrated ere the leading vessel entered, and pointed 
out to Daggett the fact that the bergs were evidently clos- 
ing, each instant increasing their movement, most prob- 
ably through the force of attraction. It is known that 
ships are thus brought in contact in calms, and it is 
thought a similar influence is exercised on the icebergs. 
At all events, the wind, the current, or attraction, was fast 
closing the passage through which the schooners had now 
to go. 


292 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Scarcely was Daggett within the channel, when an enor- 
mous mass fell from the summit of one of the bergs, liter- 
ally closing the passage in his wake, while it compelled 
Gardiner to put his helm down, and to tack ship, standing 
off from the tottering berg. The scene that followed was 
frightful ! The cries on board the leading craft denoted 
her peril, but it was not possible for Roswell to penetrate 
to her with his vessel. All he could do was to heave-to 
his own schooner, lower a boat, and pull back towards the 
point of danger. This he did at once, manfully, but with 
an anxious mind and throbbing heart. He actually urged 
his boat into the chasm beneath an arch in the fallen frag- 
ment, and made his way to the very side of Daggett’s ves- 
sel. The last was nipped again, and that badly, but was 
not absolutely lost. The falling fragment from the berg 
alone prevented her and all in her from being ground 
into powder. This block, of enormous size, kept the two 
bergs asunder ; and now that they could not absolutely 
come together, they began slowly to turn in the current, 
gradually opening and separating, at the very point where 
they had so lately seemed attracted to a closer union. In 
an hour the way was clear, and the boats towed the schooner 
stern foremost into the broader passage. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


298 


CHAPTER XX. 

A voice upon the prairies, 

A cry of woman’s woe, 

That mingleth with the autumn blast 
All fitfully and low. 

Mrs. Sigournet. 

• 

The accident to the Sea Lion of the Vineyard occurred 
very near the close of the month of March, which, in the 
southern hemisphere, corresponds to our month of Septem- 
ber. This was somewhat late for a vessel to remain in so 
high a latitude, though it was not absolutely dangerous to 
be found there several weeks longer. We have given a 
glance at Mary Pratt and her uncle, about this time ; but 
it has now become expedient to carry the reader forward 
for a considerable period, and take another look at our he- 
roine and her miserly uncle, some seven month's later. In 
that interval a great change had come over the deacon and 
his niece ; and hope had nearly deserted all those who had 
friends on board the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond, as the fol- 
lowing explanation will show was reasonable, and to be 
expected. 

When Captain Gardiner sailed, it was understood that 
his absence would not extend beyond a single season. All 
who had friends and connections on board his schooner, 
had been assured of this ; and great was the anxiety, and 
deep the disappointment, when the first of our own summer 
months failed to bring back the adventurers. As week 
succeeded week, and the vessel did not return, the concern 
increased, until hope began to be lost in apprehension. 
Deacon Pratt groaned in spirit over his loss, finding little 
consolation in the gains secured by means of the oil sent 
home, as is apt to be the case with the avaricious, when 
their hearts are once set on gain. As for Mary, the load 


294 


THE SEA LIONS. 


on her heart increased in weight, as it might be, day by 
day, until those smiles, which had caused her sweet counte- 
nance to be radiant with innocent joy, entirely disappeared, 
and she was seen to smile no more. Still, complaints never 
passed her lips. She prayed much, and found all her relief 
in such pursuits as comported with her feelings, but she 
seldom spoke of her grief ; never, except at weak moments, 
when her querulous kinsman introduced the subject, in his 
frequent lamentations over his losses. 

The month of November is apt to be stormy on the At- 
lantic coasts of the republic. It is true that the heaviest 
gales do not then occur, but the weather is generally stern- 
and wintry, and the winds are apt to be high and boister- 
ous. At a place like Oyster Pond, the gales from the 
ocean are felt with almost as much power as on board a 
vessel at sea; and Mary became keenly sensible of the 
change from the bland breezes of summer to the sterner 
blasts of autumn. As for the deacon, his health was actu- 
ally giving way before anxiety, until the result was getting 
to be a matter of doubt. Premature old age appeared to 
have settled on him, and his niece had privately consulted 
Dr. Sage on. his case. The excellent girl was grieved to 
find that the mind of her uncle grew more worldly, his de- 
sires for wealth more grasping, as he was losing his hold 
on life, and was approaching nearer to that hour when time 
is succeeded by eternity. All this while, however, Deacon 
Pratt “ kept about,” as he expressed it himself, and strug- 
gled to look after his interests, as had been his practice 
through life. He collected his debts, foreclosed his mort- 
gages when necessary, drove tight bargains for his wood 
and other salable articles, and neglected nothing that he 
thought would tend to increase his gains. Still, his heart 
was with his schooner ; for he had expected much from 
that adventure, and the disappointment was in proportion 
to the former hopes. 

One day, near the close of November, the deacon and his 
niece were alone together in the “ keeping-room,” — as it 
was, if it be not still, the custom among persons of New 
England origin to call the ordinary sitting-apartment, — ha 


THE SEA LIONS. 


295 


bolstered up in an easy-chair, on account of increasing in- 
firmities, and she plying the needle in her customary way. 
The chairs of both were so placed that it was easy for either 
to look out upon that bay, now of a wintry aspect, where 
Roswell had last anchored, previously to sailing. 

“ What a pleasant sight it would be, uncle,” Mary, al- 
most unconsciously to herself, remarked, as, with tearful 
eyes, 3he sat gazing intently on the water, “ could we only 
awake and find the Sea Lion at anchor, under the point of 
Gardiner’s Island ! I often fancy that such may be — nay, 
must be the case yet ; but it never comes to pass ! I would 
not tell you yesterday, for you did not seem to be as well 
as common, but I have got an answer, by Baiting Joe, to 
my letter sent across to the Vineyard.” 

The deacon started, and half-turned his body towards 
his niece, on whose face his own sunken eyes were now 
fastened with almost ferocious interest. It was the love of 
Mammon, stirring within him the lingering remains of cov- 
etousness. Fie thought of his property, while Mary thought 
of those whose lives had been endangered, if not lost, by 
the unhappy adventure. The latter understood the look, 
however, so far as to answer its inquiry, in her usual gentle, 
feminine voice. 

“ I am sorry to say, sir, that no news has been heard 
from Captain Daggett, or any of his people,” was the sad 
reply to this silent interrogatory. “No one on the island 
has heard a word from the Vineyard vessel since the day 
before she sailed from Rio. There is the same uneasiness 
felt among Captain Daggett’s friends, as we feel for poor 
Roswell. They think, however, that the two vessels have 
kept together, and believe that the same fate has befallen 
both.” 

“ Heaven forbid ! ” exclaimed the deacon, as sharply as 
wasting lungs would allow, “ Heaven forbid ! If Gar’ner 
lias let that Daggett keep in his company an hour longer 
than was necessary, he has deserved to meet with shipwreck, 
though the loss always falls heaviest on the owners.” 

“ Surely, uncle, it is more cheering to think that the two 
schooners are together in those dangerous seas, than to 


296 


THE SEA LIONS. 


imagine one, alone, left to meet the risks, without a com 
panion ! ” 

“ You talk idly, gal — as women always talk. If you 
know’d all, you would n’t think of such a thing.” 

“ So you have said often, uncle, and I fear there is some 
mystery preying all this time on your spirits. Why not 
relieve your mind, by telling your troubles to me ? I am 
your child in affection, if not by birth.” 

“ You ’re a good gal, Mary,” answered the deacon, a 
good deal softened by the plaintive tones of one of the 
gentlest voices that ever fell on human ear, “ an excellent 
creatur’ at the bottom — but of course you know nothing 
of the sealing business, and next to nothing about taking 
care of property.” 

“ I hope you do not think me wasteful, sir ? That is a 
character I should not like to possess.” 

“ No, not wasteful ; on the contrary, curful (so the dea- 
con pronounced the word) and considerate enough, as to 
keeping , but awfully indifferent as to getting. Had I been 
as indifferent as you are yourself, your futur’ days would 
not be so comfortable and happy as they are now likely to 
be, a’ter my departure — if depart I must*’ 

“ My future life happy and comfortable ! ” thought Mary ; 
then she struggled to be satisfied with her lot, and contented 
with the decrees of Providence. “ It is but a few hours 
that we live in this state of trials, compared to the endless 
existence that is to succeed it.” 

“ I wish I knew all about this voyage of Roswell’s,” she 
added, aloud ; for she was perfectly certain that there was 
something to be told that, as yet, the deacon had concealed 
from her. “It might relieve your mind, and lighten your 
spirits of a burden, to make me a confidant.” 

The deacon mused in silence for more than five minutes. 
Seldom had his thoughts gone over so wide a reach of in- 
terests and events in so short a space of time ; but the con- 
clusion was clear and decided. 

“ You ought to know all, Mary, and you shall know all,” 
he answered, in the manner of a man who had made up hi* 
mind beyond appeal. “ Gar’ner has gone a’ter seal to some 


THE SEA LIONS. 


297 


islands that the Daggett who died here, about a year and 
a half ago, told me of ; islands of which nobody know’d 
anything, according to his account, but himself. His ship- 
mates, that saw the place when he saw it, were all dead, 
afore he let me into the secret.” 

“ I have long suspected something of the sort, sir, and 
have also supposed that the people on Martha’s Vineyard 
had got some news of this place, by the manner in which 
Captain Daggett has acted.” 

“ Is n’t it wonderful, gal ? Islands, they tell me, where 
a schooner can fill up with ile and skins, in the shortest 
season in which the sun ever shone upon an antarctic sum- 
mer ! Wonderful ! wonderful ! ” 

“ Very extraordinary, perhaps ; but we should remember, 
uncle, at how much risk the young men of the country go 
on these distant voyages, and how dearly their profits are 
sometimes bought.” 

“ Bought ! If the schooner would only come back, 1 
should think nothing of all that. It ’s the cost of the vessel 
and outfit, Mary, that weighs so much on my spirits. Well, 
Gar’ner’s first business is with them islands, which are at 
an awful distance for one to trust his property ; but, ‘ noth- 
ing ventured, nothing got,’ they say. By my calculations, 
the schooner has had to go a good five hundred miles among 
the ice, to get to the spot ; not such ice as a body falls in 
with, in going and coming between England and Ameriky, 
as we read of in the papers, but ice that covers the sea as 
we sometimes see it piled up in Gar’ner’s Bay, only a hun- 
dred times higher, and deeper, and broader, and colder ! 
It’s desperate cold ice, the sealers all tell me, that of the 
antarctic seas. Some on ’em think it’s colder down south 
than it is the other way, up towards Greenland and Iceland 
itself. It’s extr’or’nary, Mary, that the weather should 
grow cold as a body journeys south ; but so it is, by all 
accounts. I never could understand it, and it is n’t so in 
Ameriky, I’m sartain. I suppose it must come of their 
turning the months round, and having their winter in the 
midst of the dog-days. I never could understand it, though 
Gar’ner has tried, more than once, to reason me into it. I 
believe, but I don’t understand.” 


298 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ It is all told in my geography here,” answered Mary, 
mechanically taking down the book, for her thoughts were 
far away in those icy seas that her uncle had been so graph- 
ically describing. *' I dare say we can find it all explained 
in the elementary parts of this book.” 

“ They do make their geographies useful, nowadays,” 
said the deacon, with rather more animation than he had 
shown before, that morning. “ They ’ve got ’em to be, now, 
almost as useful as almanacs. Read what it says about the 
seasons, child.” 

“ It says, sir, that the changes in the seasons are owing 
to ‘ the inclination of the earth’s axis to the plane of its 
orbit.’ I do not exactly understand what that means, 
uncle.” 

“No, — it’s not as clear it might be. The declina- 
tion ” — - 

“ inclination, sir, is what is printed here.” 

“ Ay, inclination. I do not see why any one should have 
much inclination for winter, but so it must be, I suppose. 
The ‘’arth’s orbit has an inclination towards changes,’ you 
say.” 

“ The changes in the seasons, sir, are owing to ‘ the in- 
clination of the earth’s axis to the plane of its orbit.’ It 
does not say that the orbit has an inclination in any partic- 
ular Way.” 

Thus was it with Mary Pratt, and thus was it with her 
uncle, the deacon. One of the plainest problems in natural 
philosophy was Hebrew to both, simply because the capacity 
that Providence has so freely bestowed on each had never 
been turned to the consideration of such useful studies. 
But while the mind of Mary Pratt was thus obscured on 
this simple, and, to such as choose to give it an hour of 
reflection, perfectly intelligible proposition, it was radiant 
as the day on another mystery, and one that has confounded 
thousands of the learned, as well as of the unlearned. To 
her intellect, nothing was clearer, no moral truth more 
vivid, no physical fact more certain, than the incarnation 
of the Son of God. She had the “ evidence of things not 
seen,” in the fullness of Divine grace ; and was profound 


THE SEA LIONS. 


299 


on this, the greatest concern of human life, while unable 
even to comprehend how the “ inclination of the earth’s 
axis to the plane of its orbit” could be the cause of the 
change of the seasons. And was it thus with her uncle? — 
he who was a pillar of the “ meeting,” whose name was 
often in men’s mouths as a “ shining light,” and who had 
got to be identified with religion in his own neighborhood, 
to a degree that caused most persons to think of Deacon 
Pratt, when they should be thinking of the Saviour? We 
are afraid he knew as little of one of these propositions as 
of the other. 

“ It ’s very extr’or’nary,” resumed the deacon, after ru- 
minating on the matter for a few moments, “ but I suppose 
it is so. Wasn’t it for this ‘ inclination ’ to cold weather, 
our vessels might go and seal under as pleasant skies as we 
have here in June. But, Mary, I suppose that was n’t to 
be, or it would be.” 

“ There would have been no seals, most likely, uncle, if 
there was no ice. They tell me that such creatures love 
the cold and the ice, and the frozen oceans. Too much 
warm weather would not suit them.” 

“ But, Mary, it might suit other folks ! Gar’ner’s whole 
ar’nd is n’t among the ice, or a’ter them seals.” 

“ I do not know that I understand you, sir. Surely 
Roswell has gone on a sealing voyage.” 

“ Sartain ; there ’s no mistake about that. But there 
may be many stopping-places in so long a road.” 

“ Do you mean, sir, that he is to use any of these stop- 
ping-places, as you call them ? ” asked Mary, eagerly, half 
breathless with her anxiety to hear all. “ You said some- 
thing about the West Indies once.” 

“ Harkee, Mary, just look out into the entry and see if 
the kitchen door is shut. And now come nearer to me, 
child, so that there may be no need of bawling what I’ve 
got to say all over Oyster Pond. There, sit down, my 
dear, and don’t look so eager, as if you wanted to eat me, 
or my mind may misgive me, and then I could n’t tell you, 
a’ter all. Perhaps it would be best, if I was to keep my 
own secret.” 


300 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Not if it has anything to do with Roswell, dear uncle ; 
not if it has anything to do with him ! You have often 
advised me to marry him, and I ought to know all about 
the man you wish me to marry.” 

“ Yes, Gar’ner will make a right good husband for any 
young woman, and I do advise you to have him. You are 
my brother’s da’ghter, Mary, and I give you this advice, 
which I should give you all the same, had you been my 
own child, instead of his’n.” 

“ Yes, sir, I know that. But what about Roswell, and 
his having to stop, on his way home ? ” 

“ Why, you must know, Mary, that this v’y’ge came al- 
together out of that seaman who died among us, last year. 
I was kind to him, as you may remember, and helped him 
to many little odd comforts,” — odd enough were they, of a 
verity, — “ and he was grateful. Of all virtues, give me 
gratitude, say I ! It is the noblest, as it is the most oncom- 
mon of all our good qualities. How little have I met with, 
in my day ! Of all the presents I have made, and gifts be- 
stowed, and good acts done, not one in ten has ever me! 
with any gratitude.” 

Mary sighed ; for well did she know how little he had 
given of his abundance, to relieve the wants of his fellow- 
creatures. She sighed, too, with a sort of mild impatience, 
that the information she sought with so much eagerness 
was so long and needlessly delayed. But the deacon had 
made up his mind to tell her all. 

“ Yes, Gar’ner has got something to do, beside sealing,” 
he resumed of himself, when his regret at the prevalence 
of ingratitude among men had exhausted itself. “ Suthin’ ” 
— for this was the way he pronounced that word — “that is 
of more importance than the schooner’s hold full of ile. lie 
is ile, I know, child ; but gold is gold. What do you think 
of that f” 

“ Is Roswell, then, to stop at Rio again, in order to sell 
Xxis oil, and send the receipts home in gold ? ” 

“ Better than that — much better than that, if he gets 
back at all. Mary felt a chill at her heart. “ Yes, that is 
the p’int — if he gets back at all. If Gar’ner ever does 


THE SEA LIONS. 


301 


come home, child, I shall expect to see him return with a 
considerable sized keg — almost a barrel, bj all accounts — 
filled with gold ! ” 

The deacon stared about him as he made this announce- 
ment, like a man who was afraid that he was telling too 
much. Nevertheless, it was to his own niece, his brother’s 
daughter, that he had confided thus much of his great se- 
cret — and reflection reassured him. 

“ How is Roswell to get all this goM, uncle, unless he 
sells his cargo ? ” Mary asked, with obvious solicitude. 

“ That ’s another p’int. I ’ll tell you all about it, gal, 
and you ’ll see the importance of keeping the secret. This 
Daggett — not the one who is out in another schooner, an- 
other Sea Lion, as it might be, but his uncle, who died 
down here at the Widow White’s — well that Daggett told 
more than the latitude and longitude of the sealing islands 
— he told me of a buried treasure ! ” 

“ Buried treasure ! Buried by whom, and consisting of 
what, uncle ? ” 

“ Buried by seamen who make free with the goods of 
others on the high seas, ag’in the time when they might 
come back and dig it up, and carry it away to be used. 
Consisting of what, indeed ! Consisting principally, ac- 
cordin’ to Daggett’s account, of heavy doubloons ; though 
there was a lot of old English guineas among ’em. Yes, I 
remember that he spoke of them guineas — three thousand 
and odd, and nearly as many doubloons ! ” 

“ Was Daggett, then, a pirate, sir ? — for they who 
make free with the goods of others on the high seas are 
neither more nor less than pirates.” 

“ No ; not he, himself. He got this secret from one who 
was a pirate, however, and who was a prisoner in a gaol 
where he was himself confined for smuggling. Yes ; that 
man told him all about the buried treasure, in return for 
some acts of kindness shown him by Daggett. It’s well 
to be kind sometimes, Mary.” 

“ It is well to be kind always, sir ; even when it is mis- 
understood, and the kindness is abused. What was the 
redemption but kindness and love, and god-like compassion 


302 


THE SEA LIONS. 


on those who neither understood it nor felt it ? But money 
collected and buried by pirates can never become yours 
uncle ; nor can it ever become the property of Roswell 
Gardiner.” 

“ Whose is it, then, gal ? ” demanded the deacon, sharply. 
“ Gainer had some such silly notion in his head when I 
first told him of this treasure ; but ’I soon brought him to 
hear reason.” 

“ I think Roswell must always have seen that a treasure 
obtained by robbery can never justly belong to any but its 
rightful owner.” 

“ And who is this rightful owner, pray ? or owners, I 
might say ; for the gold was picked up, here and there, out 
of all question, from many hands. Now, supposing Gar- 
’ner gets this treasure, as I still hope he may, though he is 
an awful time about it — but suppose be gets it, how is he 
to find the rightful owners ? There it is, a bag of doub- 
loons, say — all looking just alike, with the head of a king, 
a Don Somebody, and the date, and the Latin and Greek — 
now who can say that ‘ this is my doubloon ; I lost it at such 
a time — it was taken from me by such a pirate, in such sea ; 
and I was whipped till I told the thieves where I had hid 
the gold ? ’ No, no, Mary ; depend on ’t, no action of 
'plevy would lie ag’in a single one of all them pieces. 
They are lost, one and all, to their former owners, and 
will belong to the man that succeeds in getting hold on 
'em ag’in ; who will become a rightful owner in his turn. 
All property comes from law ; and if the law won’t ’plevy 
money got in this way, nobody can maintain a claim to 
it.” 

“ I should be very, very sorry, my dear uncle, to have 
Roswell enrich himself in this way.” 

“ You talk like a silly young woman, and one that does 
not know her own rights. We had no hand in robbing the 
folks of their gold. They lost it years ago, and may be 
dead — probably are, or they would make some stir about 
it — or have forgotten it, and could n’t for their lives tell 
a single one of the coins they once had in their possession ; 
and don’t know whether what they lost was thrown into 


THE SEA LIONS. 


303 


the sea, or buried in the sand on a key — Mary, child 
you must never mention anything I tell you on this sub- 
ject ! ” 

“ You need fear nothing, sir, from me. But I do most 
earnestly hope Roswell will have nothing to do with any 
such ill-gotten wealth. He is too noble-hearted and gener- 
ous to get rich in this way.” 

“ Well, well, say no more about it, child : you ’re romantic 
and notional. Just pour out my drops ; for all this talking 
makes me breathe thick. I ’m not what I was, Mary, and 
cannot last long ; but was it the last breath I drew, I would 
stand to it, that treasure desarted and found in this way 
belongs to the last holder. I go by the law, however ; let 
Gar’ner only find it — well, well, I ’ll say no more about 

it now ; for it distresses you, and that I don’t like to see. 

Go and hunt up the Spectator, child, and look for the 
whaling news — perhaps there may be suthin’ about the 
sealers too.” 

Mary did not require to be told twice to do as her uncle 

requested. The paper was soon found, and the column 

that contained the marine intelligence consulted. The 
niece read a long account of whalers spoken, with so many 
hundred or so many thousand barrels of oil on board, but 
could discover no allusion to any sealer. At length she 
turned her eyes into the body of the journal, which being 
semi-weekly, or tri-weekly, was crowded with matter, and 
started at seeing a paragraph to the following effect : — 

“ By the arrival of the Twin Sisters at Stonington, we 
learn that the ice has been found farther north in the 
southern hemisphere this season, than it has been known 
to be for many years. The sealers have had a great deal 
of difficulty in making their way through it ; and even 
vessels bound round the Cape of Good Hope have been 
much embarrassed by its presence.” 

“ That ’s it ! — Yes Mary, that ’s just it ! ” exclaimed the 
deacon. “It’s that awful ice. If ’t was n’t for the ice, 
sealin’ would be as pleasant a calling as preachin’ the gos- 
pel ! It is possible that this ice has turned Gar’ner back, 
when he has been on his way home, and that he has been 


804 


THE SEA LIONS. 

waiting for a better time to come north. There ’s one 
good p’int in this news — they tell me that when the ice is 
seen drifting about in low latitudes, it ’s a sign there ’s less 
of it in the higher.” 

“ The Cape of Good Hope is certainly, in one sense, in 
a low latitude, uncle ; if I remember right, it is not as far 
south as we are north ; and, as you say, it is a good sign 
if the ice has come anywhere near it.” 

“ I don’t say it has, child ; I don’t say it has. But it 
may have come to the northward jxi Cape Horn, and that 
will be a great matter ; for all the ice that is drifting about 
there comes from the polar seas, and is so much taken out 
of Gar’ner’s track.” 

“ Still he must come through it to get home,” returned 
Mary, in her sweet, melancholy tones. “ Ah ! why cannot 
men be content with the blessings that Providence places 
within our immediate reach, that they must make distant 
voyages to accumulate others ! ” 

“.You like your tea, I fancy, Mary Pratt — and the 
sugar in it, and your silks and ribbons that I ’ve seen you 
wear ; how are you to get such matters if there ’s to be 
no going on v’y’ges ? Tea and sugar, and silks and satins 
don’t grow along with the clams on 4 Yster Pond,’ ” — for 
so the deacon uniformly pronounced the word “ oyster.” 

Mary acknowledged the truth of what was said, but 
changed the subjedt. The journal contained no more 
that related to sealing or sealers, and it was soon laid 
aside. 

“ It may be that Gar’ner is digging for the buried treas- 
ure all this time,” the deacon at length resumed. “ That 
may be the reason he is so late. If so, he has nothing to 
dread from ice.” 

“ I understand you, sir, that this money is supposed to 
je buried on a key — in the West Indies, of course.” 

“ Don’t speak so loud, Mary — there ’s no need of letting 
all ’Yster Pond know where the treasure is. It may be 
in the West Ingees, or it may not; there’s keys all over 
the ’arth, I take it.” 

“ Do you not think, uncle, that Roswell would write, if 
detained long among those keys ? ” 


THE SEA LIONS. 


305 


“ You would n’t hear to post-offices in the antarctic 
ocean, and now you want to put them on the sand-keys of 
the West Ingees ! Woman’s always a sailin’ ag’in wind 
and tide.” 

“ I do not think so, sir, in this case, at least. There 
must be many vessels passing among the keys of the West 
Indies, and nothing seems to me to be easier than to send 
letters by them. I am quite sure Roswell would write, if 
in a part of the world where he thought what he wrote 
would reach us.” 

“ Not he — not he — Gar’ner’s not the man I take hia 
for, if he let any one know what he is about in them keys 
until he had done up all his business there. No, np, Mary, 
We shall never hear from him in that quarter of th* 
world. It may be that Gar’ner is a digging about, ano 
has difficulty in finding the place ; for Daggett’s account, 
had some weak spots in it.” 

Mary made no reply, though she thought it very littlt 
likely that Roswell would pass months in the West Indies 
employed in such a pursuit, without finding the means ol 
letting her know where he was, and what he was about. 
The intercourse between these young people was some- 
what peculiar, and ever had been. In listening to the 
suit of Roswell, Mary h£d yielded to her heart ; in hesitat- 
ing about accepting him, she deferred to her principles. 
Usually, a mother — not a managing, match-making, in- 
terested parent, but a prudent, feminine, well-principled 
mother — is of the last importance to the character and 
well-being of a young woman. It sometimes happens, 
however, that a female who has no parent of her own sex, 
and who is early made to be dependent on herself, if the 
bias of her mind is good, becomes as careful and prudent 
of herself and her conduct as the advice and solicitude of 
the most tender mother could make her. Such had been 
the case with Mary Pratt. Perfectly conscious of her 
own deserted situation, high principled, and early awake to 
the defects in her uncle’s character, she had laid down 
severe rules for the government of her own conduct ; and 
from these rules she never departed. Thus it was that she 
20 


306 


THE SEA LIONS. 


permitted Roswell to write, though she never answered his 
letters. She permitted him to write, because she had 
promised not to shut her ears to his suit, so long as he 
practiced towards her his native and manly candor ; con- 
cealing none of his opinions, and confessing his deficiency 
on the one great point that formed the only obstacle to 
their union. 

A young woman who has no mother, if she escape the 
ills attendant on the privation while her character is form- 
ing, is very apt to acquire qualities that are of great use in 
her future life. She learns to rely on herself, gets accus- 
tomed to think and act like an accountable being, and is 
far more likely to become a reasoning and useful head of a 
family, than if brought up in dependence, and under the 
control of even the best maternal government. In a word, 
the bias of the mind is sooner obtained in such circum- 
stances than when others do so much of the thinking ; 
whether that bias be in a right or in a wrong direction. 
But Mary Pratt had early taken the true direction in all 
that relates to opinion and character, and had never been 
wanting to herself in any of the distinctive and discreet 
deportment of her sex. 

Our heroine hardly knew whether or not to seek for 
consolatiou in her uncle’s suggestion of Roswell’s being 
detained among the keys, in order to look for the hidden 
treasure. The more she reflected on this subject, the more' 
did it embarrass her. Few persons who knew of the exist- 
ence of such a deposit would hesitate about taking posses- 
sion of it ; and, once reclaimed, in what way were the best 
intentions to be satisfied with the disposition of the gold ? 
To find the owners would probably be impossible ; and a 
question in casuistry remained. Mary pondered much on 
this subject, and came to the conclusion that, were she the 
person to whom such a treasure were committed, she would 
set aside a certain period for advertising ; and failing to 
discover those who had the best claim to the money, that 
she would appropriate every dollar to a charity. 

Alas ! Little did Mary understand the world. The fact 
that money was thus advertised would probably have 


THE SEA LIONS. 


307 


brought forward a multitude of dishonest pretenders to 
having been robbed by pirates ; and scarce a doubloon 
would have found its way into the pocket of its right 
owner, even had she yielded all to the statements of such 
claimants. 

All this, however, did not bring back the missing Ros- 
well. Another winter was fast approaching, with its chill- 
ing storms and gales, to awaken apprehensions by keeping 
the turbulence of the ocean, as it might be, constantly be- 
fore the senses. Not a week now passed that the deacon 
did not get a letter from some wife, or parent, or sister, or 
perhaps from one who hesitated to avow her relations to 
the absent mariner ; all inquiring after the fate of those 
who had sailed in the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond, under the 
orders of Captain Roswell Gardiner. 

Even those of the Vineyard sent across questions, and 
betrayed anxiety and dread, in the very manner of putting 
their interrogatories. Each day did the deacon’s apprehen- 
sions increase, until it was obvious to all around him that 
this cause, united to others that were more purely physical, 
perhaps, was seriously undermining his health, and men 
acing his existence. It is a sad commentary on the greedi- 
ness for gain, manifested by this person, that ere the 
adventure he had undertaken on the strength of Daggett’s 
reluctant communications was brought to any appar^t re- 
sult, he himself was nearly in the condition of that diseased 
seaman, with as little prospect of being benefited by his 
secrets as was the man himself who first communicated 
their existence. Mary saw all this clearly, and mourned 
almost as much over the blindness and worldliness of her 
uncle as she did over the now nearly assured fate of him 
whom she had so profoundly loved in her heart’s core. 

Day by day did time roll on, without bringing any tid- 
ings of either of the Sea Lions. The deacon grew weak 
fast, until he seldom left his room, and still more rarely the 
house. It was now that he was induced to make his will, 
and this by an agency so singular as to deserve being men- 
tioned. The Rev. Mr. Whittle broached the subject one 
day, not with any interested motive of course, but simply 


308 


THE SEA LIONS. 


because the u meeting-house ” wanted some material repairs, 
and there was a debt on the congregation that it might be 
a pleasure to one who had long stood in the relation to it 
that Deacon Pratt filled, to pay off, when he no longer had 
any occasion for the money for himself. It is probable 
the deacon at length felt the justice of this remark ; for he 
sent to Riverhead for a lawyer, and made a will that would 
have stood even the petulant and envious justice of the 
present day ; a justice that inclines to divide a man’s es- 
tate infinitesimally, lest some heir become a little richer 
than his neighbors. After all, no small portion of that 
which struts about under the aspects of right, and liberty, 
and benevolence, is in truth derived from some of the most 
sneaking propensities of human nature I 


THE SEA LIONS. 


309 


CHAPTER XXI. 

I, too, have seen thee on thy surging path 

When the night-tempest met thee; thou didst dash 
Thy white arms high in heaven, as if in wrath, 

Threatening the angry sky ; thy waves did lash 
The laboring vessel, and with deadening crash 
Rush madly forth to scourge its groaning sides ; 

Onward thy billows came, to meet and clash 
In a wild warfare, till the lifted tides 
Mingled their yesty tops, where the dark storm-cloud rides. 

Percivau 

The first movement of the mariner, when his vessel has 
been brought in collision with any hard substance, is to 
sound the pumps. This very necessary duty was in the act 
of performance by Daggett, in person, even while the boats 
of Roswell Gardiner were towing his strained and roughly 
treated craft into the open water. The result of this ex- 
amination was waited for by all on board, including Ros- 
well, with the deepest anxiety. The last held the lantern 
by which the height of the water in the well was to be 
ascertained ; the light of the moon scarce sufficing for 
such a purpose. Daggett stood on the top of the pump 
himself, while Gardiner and Macy were at his side. At 
length the sounding-rod came up, and its lower end was 
held out, in order to ascertain how high up it was wet. 

“ Well, what do you make of it, Gar’ner ? ” Daggett de- 
manded, a little impatiently. “ Water there must be ; for 
no craft that floats could have stood such a squeeze, and 
not have her sides open.” 

“ There must be near three feet of water in your hold,” 
answered Roswell, shaking his head. “ If this goes on, 
Captain Daggett, it will be hard work to keep your schooner 
afloat ! ” 

“ Afloat she shall be, while a pump-brake can work 


810 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Here, rig this larboard pump at once, and get it in mo- 
tion.” 

“ It is possible that your seams opened under the nip, 
and have closed again, as soon as the schooner got free. 
In such a case, ten minutes at the pump will let us know 
it.” 

Although there is no duty to which seamen are so averse 
as pumping, — none, perhaps, that is actually so exhausting 
and laborious, — it often happens that they have recourse 
to it with eagerness, as the only available means of saving 
their lives. Such was now the case, the harsh but familiar 
strokes of the pump-brake being audible amid the more 
solemn and grand sounds of the grating of icebergs, the 
rushing of floes, and the occasional scuffling and howling 
of the winds. The last appeared to have changed in their 
direction, however ; a circumstance that was soon noted, 
there being much less of biting cold in the blasts than had 
been felt in the earlier hours of the night. 

“ I do believe that the wind has got round here to the 
northeast,” said Roswell, as he paced the quarter-deck 
with Daggett, still holding in his hand the well wiped and 
dried sounding-rod, in readiness for another trial. “ That 
last puff was right in our teeth ! ” 

“ Not in our teeth, Gar’ner ; no, not in my teeth,” an- 
swered Daggett, “ whatever it may be in your'n. I shall 
try to get back to the island, where I shall endeavor to 
beach the schooner, and get a look at her leaks. This is 
the most I can hope for. It would never do to think of 
carrying a craft, after such a nip, as far as Rio, pumping 
every foot of the way ! ” 

“ That will cause a great delay, Captain Daggett,” said 
Roswell, doubtingly. “We are now well in among the 
first great body of the ice ; it may be as easy to work our 
way to the northward of it, as to get back into clear water 
to the southward.” 

“ I dare say it would ; but back I go. I do not ask you 
to accompany us, Gar’ner ; by no means. A’ter the hand- 
some manner in which you ’ve waited for us so long, I 
could n’t think of such a thing ! If the wind has r’ally got 


THE SEA LIONS. 


311 


round to nothe-east, and I begin to think it has, l shall get 
the schooner into the cove in four-and-twenty hours ; and 
there ’s as pretty a spot to beach her, just under the shelf 
where we kept our spare casks, as a body can wish. In a 
fortnight we ’ll have her leaks all stopped, and be jogging 
along in your wake. You ’ll tell the folks on Oyster Pond 
that we ’re a-coming, and they ’ll be sure to send the news 
across to the Vineyard.” 

This was touching Roswell on a point of honor, and 
Daggett knew it very well. Generous and determined, the 
young man was much more easily influenced by a silent 
and indirect appeal to his liberal qualities, than he could 
possibly have been by any other consideration. The idea 
of deserting a companion in distress, in a sea like that in 
which he was, caused him to shrink from what, under other 
circumstances, he would regard as an imperative duty. 
The deacon, and still more, Mary, called him north , but 
the necessities of the Vineyarders would seem to chain him 
to their fate. 

“ Let us see what the pump tells us now,” cried Roswell, 
impatiently. “ Perhaps the report may make matters bet- 
ter than we have dared to hope for. If the pump gains on 
the leak, all may yet be well.” 

“ It ’s encouraging and hearty to hear you say this ; but 
no one who was in that nip, as a body might say, can ever 
expect the schooner to make a run of two thousand miles 
without repairs. To my eye, Gar’ner, these bergs are sep- 
arating, leaving us a clearer passage back to the open 
water.” 

“ I do believe you are right ; but it seems a sad loss of 
time, and a great risk, to go through these mountains again,” 
returned Roswell. “ The wind has shifted ; and the near- 
est bergs, from some cause or other, are slowly opening ; 
but recollect what a mass of floe-ice there is outside. Let 
us sound again.” 

The process was renewed this time much easier than be- 
fore, the boxes being already removed. The result was 
soon known. 

u Well, what news, Gar’ner ? ” demanded Daggett, lean- 


812 


THE SEA LIONS. 


ing down, in a vain endeavor to perceive the almost imper- 
ceptible marks that distinguished the wet part of the rod 
from that which was dry. “ Do we gain on the leak, or 
does the leak gain on us ? God send it may be the first ! ” 

“ God has so sent it, sir,” answered Stimson, reverently ; 
for he was holding the lantern, having remained on board 
the damaged vessel by the order of his officer. “ It is He 
alone, Captain Daggett, who could do this much to seamen 
in distress.” 

“ Then to God be thanks, as is due ! If we can but 
keep the leak under, the schooner may yet be saved.” 

“ I think it may be done, Daggett,” added Roswell. 
“ That one pump has brought the water down more than 
two inches ; and, in my judgment, the two together would 
clear her entirely.” 

“We ’ll pump her till she sucks ! ” cried Daggett. “ Rig 
the other pump, men, and go to the work heartily.” 

This was done, though #not until Roswell ordered fully 
half of his own crew to come to the assistance of his con- 
sort. By this time the two vessels had filled away, made 
more sail, and were running off before the new wind, re- 
tracing their steps, so far as one might judge of the position 
of the great passage. Daggett’s vessel led, and Hazard fol- 
lowed ; Roswell still remaining on board the injured craft. 
Thus passed the next few hours. The pumps soon sucked, 
and it was satisfactorily ascertained that the schooner 
could be freed from the water by working at them about 
one fourth of the time. This was a bad leak, and one that 
would have caused any crew to become exhausted in the 
course of a few days. As Roswell ascertained the facts 
more clearly, he became better satisfied with a decision that, 
in a degree, had been forced on him. He was passively 
content to return with Daggett, convinced that taking the 
injured vessel to Rio was out of the question, until some 
attention had been paid to her damages. 

Fortune — or as Stimson would say, Providence — fa- 
vored our mariners greatly in the remainder of their run 
among the bergs. There were several avalanches of snow 
quite near to them, and one more berg performed a rev- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


313 


olution at do great distance ; but no injury was sustained 
by either vessel. As the schooners got once more near to 
the field-ice, Roswell went on board his own craft ; ind 
all the boats, which had been towing in the open passage, 
were run up and secured. Gardiner now led, leaving his 
consort to follow as closely in his wake as she could keep. 

Much greater difficulty, and dangers indeed, were en- 
countered among the broken and grating floes, than had 
been expected or previously met with. Notwithstanding 
fenders were got out on all sides, many a rude shock was 
sustained, and the copper suffered in several places. Once 
or twice, Roswell apprehended that the schooners would 
be crushed by the pressure on their sides. The hazards 
were in some measure increased by the bold manner in 
which our navigators felt themselves called on to push 
ahead ; for time was very precious in every sense, not only 
on account of the waning season, but actually on account 
of the fatigue undergone by men who were compelled to 
toil at the pumps one minute in every four. 

At the return of day, now getting to be later than it had 
been during the early months of their visit to these seas, 
our adventurers found themselves in the centre of vast 
fields of floating ice, driving away from the bergs, which, 
influenced by under-currents, were still floating north, while 
the floes drove to the southward. It was very desirable to 
get clear of all this cake-ice, though the grinding among it 
was by no means as formidable as when the seas were run- 
ning high, and the whole of the frozen expanse was in 
violent commotion. Motion, however, soon became nearly 
impossible, except as the schooners drifted in the midst of 
the mass, which was floating south at the rate of about two 
knots. 

Thus passed an entire day and night. So compact was 
the ice arojind them, that the mariners passed from one 
vessel to the other on it, with the utmost confidence. No 
apprehension was felt so long as the wind stood in its pres- 
ent quarter, the fleet of bergs actually forming as good a 
lee as if they had been so much land. On the morning of 
the second day, all this suddenly changed. The ice began 


314 


THE SEA LIONS. 


to open ; why, was matter of conjecture, though it was at- 
tributed to a variance between the wind and the currents. 
This, in some measure, liberated the schooners, and they 
began to move independently of the floes. About noon, 
the smoke of the volcano became once more visible ; and 
before the sun went down the cap of the highest elevation 
in the group was seen, amid flurries of snow. 

Every one was glad to see these familiar landmarks, 
dreary and remote from the haunts of men as they were 
known to be ; for there was a promise in them of a tempo- 
rary termination of their labors. Incessant pumping — 
one minute in four being thus employed on board the Vine- 
yard craft — was producing its customary effect ; and the 
men looked jaded and exhausted. No one who has not 
stood at a pump-brake on board a vessel, can form any no- 
tion of the nature of the toil, or of the extreme dislike with 
which seamen regard it. The tread-mill, as we conceive 
— for our experience extends to the first, though not to 
the last of these occupations — is {.he nearest approach to 
the pain of such toil, though the convict does not work for 
his life. 

On the morning of the fourth day, our mariners found 
themselves in the great bay, in clear water, about a league 
from the cove, and nearly dead to windward of their port. 
The helms were put up, and the schooners were soon within 
the well-known shelter. As they ran in, Roswell gazed 
around him, in regret, awe, and admiiation. He could not 
but regret being compelled to lose so much precious time, 
at that particular season. Short as had 'been his absence 
from the group, sensible changes in the aspect of things 
had already occurred. Every sign of summer — and they 
had ever been few and meagre — was now lost ; a chill and 
dreary autumn having succeeded. As a matter of course, 
nothing was altered about the dwelling ; the piles of wood, 
and other objects placed there by the hands of man, re- 
maining just as they had been left; but even these looked 
less cheering, more unavailable, than when last seen. To 
the surprise of all, not a seal was visible. From some cause 
unknown to the men, all of these animals had disappeared. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


315 


thereby defeating one of Daggett’s secret calculations ; this 
provident master having determined, in his own mind, to 
profit by his accident, and seize the occasion to fill up. 
Some said that the creatures had gone north to winter ; 
others asserted that they had been alarmed, and had taken 
refuge on one of the other islands ; but all agreed in saying 
that they were gone. 

It is known that a seal will occasionally wander a great 
distance from what may be considered his native waters ; 
but we are not at all aware that they are to be considered 
as migratory animals. The larger species usually take a 
wide range of climate to dwell in, and even the little fur- 
seal sometimes gets astray, and is found on coasts that do 
not usually come within his haunts. As respects the ani- 
mals that so lately abounded on Sealer’s Land, we shall 
hazard no theory, our business being principally with facts ; 
but a conversation that took place between the two chief 
mates on this occasion may possibly assist some inquiring 
mind in its speculations. 

“ Well, Macy,” said Hazard, pointing along the deserted 
rocks, “ what do you think of that ? Not an animal to be 
seen, where there were lately thousands ! ” 

“ What do I think of it ? — Why, I think they are off, 
and I ’ve know’d such things to happen afore.” The 
sealers of 1819 were not very particular about their Eng- 
lish, even among their officers. “ Any man who watches 
for signs and symptoms, may know how to take this.” 

“ I should like to hear it explained ; to me it is quite 
new.” 

“ The seals are off, and that is a sign we should be off, 
too. There ’s my explanation, and you may make what 
you please of it. Natur’ gives sich hints, and no prudent 
seaman ought to overlook ’em. I say that when the seals 
go, the sealers should go likewise.” 

“ And you set this down as a hint from natur’, as you 
call it?” 

“I do ; and a useful hint it is. If we was in sailing 
trim, I ’d ha’nt the old man, but I’d get him off this blessed 
night. Now, mark my words, Hazard — no good will 


316 


THE SEA. LIONS. 


come of that nip, and of this return into port ag’in ; and 
of all this veering and hauling upon cargo.” 

The other mate laughed ; but a call from his command- 
ing officer put a stop to the dialogue. Hazard was wanted 
to help secure the schooner of Daggett in the berth in 
which she was now placed. The tides do not appear to 
rise and fall in very high latitudes, by any means as much 
as it does in about 50°. In the antarctic sea they are re- 
ported to be but of medium elevation and force. This fact 
our navigators had noted ; and Daggett had, at once, car- 
ried his schooner on the only thing like a beach that was 
to be found on any part of that wild coast. His craft was 
snug within the cove, and quite handy for discharging and 
taking in. Beach, in a proper sense, it was not ; being, 
with a very trifling exception, nothing but a shelf of rock 
that was a little inclined, and which admitted of a vessel’s 
being placed upon it, as on the floor of a dock. 

Into* this berth Daggett took his schooner, while the 
other vessel anchored. There was nearly a whole day be- 
fore them, and all the men were at once set to work to dis- 
charge the cargo of the injured vessel. To get rid of the 
j umps, they would cheerfully have worked the twenty-four 
hours without intermission. As fast as the vessel was 
lightened, she was hove farther and farther on the rock, 
until she was got so high as to be perfectly safe from sink- 
ing, or from injuring anything on board her ; when the 
pumps were abandoned. Before night came, however, the 
schooner was so secured by means of shores, and purchases 
aloft that were carried out to the rocks, as to stand per- 
fectly upright on her keel. She was thus protected when 
the tide left her. At low water it was found that she 
wanted eight feet of being high and dry, having already 
been lightened four feet. A good deal of cargo was still 
in, on this the first night after her return. 

The crew of Daggett’s vessel carried iheir mattresses 
ashore, took possession of the bunks, lighted a fire in the 
stove, and made their preparations to get the camboose 
•ashore next day,, and do their cooking in the house, as had 
been practiced previously to quitting the island. Roswell 
and all his people remained on board their own vessel. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


317 


The succeeding day the injured schooner was cleared of 
everything, even to her spars, the lower masts and bow- 
sprit excepted. Two large sealing crews made quick work 
with so small a craft. Empty casks were got under her, 
and at the top of the tide she was floated quite up to the 
small beach that was composed of the debris of rock, 
already mentioned. As the water left her, she fell over 
a little, of course ; and at half-tide her keel lay high and 
dry. 

The prying eyes of all* hands were now busy looking 
out for the leaks. As might have been expected, none 
were found near the garboard streak, a fact that was 
clearly enough proved by a quantity of the water remain- 
ing in the vessel after she lay, entirely bare, nearly on her 
bilge. 

“ Her seams have opened a few streaks below the 
bends,” said Roswell, as he and Daggett went under the 
vessel’s bottom, looking out for injuries ; “ and you had 
better set about getting off the copper at once. Has there 
been an examination made inside ? ” 

None had yet been made, and our two masters clam- 
bered up to the main hatch, and got as good a look at the 
state of things in the hold as could be thus obtained. So 
tremendous had been the pressure, that three of the deck 
beams were broken. They would have been driven quite 
clear of their fastenings, had not the wall of ice at each 
end prevented the possibility of such a thing. As it was, 
the top-timbers had slightly given way, and the seams 
must have opened just below the water-line. When the 
tide came in again, the schooner righted of course ; and 
the opportunity was taken to pump her dry. There was 
then no leak ; another proof that the defective places must 
be sought above the present water-line. 

With the knowledge thus obtained, the copper was re- 
moved, and several of the seams examined. The condi- 
tion of the pitch and oakum pointed out the precise spots 
that needed attention, and the calking-irons were immedi- 
ately set at work. In about a week the job was completed, 
as was fancied, the copper replaced, and the schooner was 


318 


THE SEA LIONS. 


got afloat again. Great was the anxiety to learn the effect 
of what had been done, and quite as great the disappoint- 
ment, when it was found that there was still a serious leak 
that admitted too much water to think of going to sea un- 
til it was stopped. A little head-work, however, and that 
on the part of Roswell, speedily gave a direction to the 
search that was immediately set on foot. 

“ This leak is not as low down as the vessel’s bilge,” he 
■said ; “ for the water did not run out of her, nor into her, 
until we got her afloat. It is somewhere, then, between 
her light-water load-line and her bilge. Now we have had 
all the copper off, and the seams examined in the wake of 
this section of the vessel’s bottom, from the fore-chains to 
the main ; and, in my judgment, it will be found that some- 
thing is wrong about her stem, or her stern-post. Perhaps 
one of her wood-ends has started. Such a thing might 
very well have happened under so close a squeeze.” 

“ In which case we shall have to lay the craft ashore 
again, and go to work anew,” answered Daggett. “ I see 
how it is ; you do not like the delay, and are thinking of 
Deacon Pratt and Oyster Pond. I do not blame you, Gar’- 
ner ; and shall never whisper a syllable ag’in you, or your 
people, if you sail for home this very a’ternoon ; leaving 
me and mine to look out for ourselves. You ’ve stood by 
us nobly thus far, and I am too thankful for what you have 
done already, to ask for more.” 

Was Daggett sincere in these professions ? To a cer- 
tain point he was ; while he was only artful on others. 
He wished to appear just and magnanimous ; while, in 
secret, it was his aim to work on the better feelings, as 
well as on the pride of Gardiner, and thus secure his ser- 
vices in getting his own schooner ready, as well as keep 
him in sight until a certain key had been examined, in the 
proceeds of which he conceived he had a share, as well a9 
in those of Sealer’s Land. Strange as it may seem, even 
in the strait in which he was now placed, with so desperate 
a prospect of ever getting his vessel home again, this man 
clung like a leech to the remotest chance of obtaining 
property. There is a bull-dog tenacity on this subject 


THE SEA LIONS. 


319 


among a certain portion of the great American family — 
the god-like Anglo-Saxon — that certainly leads to great 
results in one respect ; but which it is often painful to re- 
gard, and never agreeable to any but themselves, to be sub- 
ject to. Of this school was Daggett, whom no dangers, 
no toil, no thoughts of a future, could divert from a pur- 
pose that was colored by gold. We do not mean to say 
that other nations are not just as mercenary ; many are 
more so ; those in particular that have long been cor- 
rupted by vicious governments. You may buy half a 
dozen Frenchmen, for instance, more easily than one Yan- 
kee ; but let the last actually get his teeth into a dollar, 
and the muzzle of the ox fares worse in the jaws of the 
bull-dog. 

Roswell was deeply reluctant to protract his stay in the 
group ; but professional pride would have prevented him 
from deserting a consort under such circumstances, had 
not a better feeling inclined him to remain and assist Dag- 
gett. It is true the last had, in a manner, thrust himself 
on him, and the connection had been strangely continued 
down to that moment ; but this he viewed as a dispensa- 
tion of Providence, to which he was bound to submit. 
The result was a declaration of a design to stand by his 
companion as long as there was any hope of getting the 
injured craft home. 

This decision pointed at once to the delay of another 
week. No time was lost in vain regrets, however ; but all 
hands went to work to get the schooner into shallow water 
again, and to look farther for the principal leak. Accu- 
rate trimming and pumping showed that a good deal of the 
water was already stopped out ; but too much still entered 
to render it prudent to think of sailing until the injury was 
repaired. This time the schooner was not suffered to lie 
on her bilge at all. She was taken into water just deep 
enough to permit her to stand upright, sustained by shores, 
while the tide left two or three streaks dry forward ; ifc 
being the intention to wiud her, should the examination 
forward not be successful. 

On stripping off the copper, it was found that a wood- 


320 


THE SEA LIONS. 


end had indeed started, the inner edge of the plank having 
got as far from its bed as where the outer had been orig- 
inally placed. This opened a crack through which a small 
stream of water must constantly pour, each hour rendering 
the leak more dangerous by loosening the oakum, and 
raising the plank from its curvature. Once discovered, 
however, nothing was easier than to repair the damage. It 
remained merely to butt-bolt anew the wood-end, drive a 
few spikes, calk, and replace the copper. Roswell, who 
was getting each moment more and more impatient to sail, 
was much vexed at a delay that really seemed unavoidable, 
as it arose from the particular position of the leak. Placed 
as it was, in a manner, between wind and water, it was not 
possible to work at it more than an hour each tide ; and 
the staging permitted but two hands to be busy at the 
same time. As a consequence of these embarrassments, 
no less than six tides came in and went out, before the 
stem was pronounced tight again. The schooner was then 
pumped out, and the vessel was once more taken into deep 
water. This time it was found that the patience and in- 
dustry of our sealers were rewarded with success; no leak 
of any account existing. 

“ She ’s as tight as a bottle with a sealed cork, Gar’ner,” 
cried Daggett, a few hours after his craft was at her an- 
chor, meeting his brother-master at his own gangway, and 
shaking hands with him cordially. “ I owe much of this 
to you, as all on the Vineyard shall know, if we ever get 
home ag’in.” 

“ I am rejoiced that it turns out so, Captain Daggett,” 
was Roswell’s reply ; “ for to own the truth to you, the 
fortnight we have lost, or shall lose, before we get you 
stowed and ready to sail again, has made a great change 
in our weather. The days are shortening with frightful 
rapidity, and the great bay was actually covered with i 
skim of ice this very morning. The wind has sent in a 
sea that has broke it up ; but look about you, in the cove 
here — a boy might walk on that ice near the rocks.” 

“ There ’ll be none of it left by night, and the two crews 
will fill me up in twenty-four hours. Keep a good heart. 


THE SEA LIONS. 321 

Gai ’ner ; I ’ll take you clear of the bergs in the course of 
the week.” 

“ I have less fear of the bergs now, than of the new ice 
and the floes. The islands must have got pretty well to 
the northward by this time ; but each night gets colder, 
and the fields seem to be setting back towards the group, 
instead of away from it.” 

Daggett cheered his companion by a good deal of confi- 
dent talk ; but Roswell was heartily rejoiced when, at the 
end of four-and-twenty hours more, the Vineyard craft was 
pronounced entirely ready. It was near the close of the 
day, and Gardiner was for sailing, or moving at once ; but 
Daggett offered several very reasonable objections. In the 
first place, there was no wind ; and Roswell’s proposition 
to tow the schooners out into the middle of the bay, was 
met by the objection that the people had been hard at work 
for several days, and that they needed some rest. All that 
could be gained by moving the schooners then, was to get 
them outside of the skim of ice that now regularly formed 
every still night near the land, but which was as regularly 
broken and dispersed by the waves, as soon as the wind 
returned. Roswell, however, did not like the appearances 
of things ; and he determined to take hi% own craft out- 
side, let Daggett do as he might. After discussing the 
matter in vain, therefore, and finding that the people of the 
other schooner had eaten their suppers and turned in, he 
called all hands, and made a short address to his own crew, 
leaving it to their discretion whether to man the boats or 
not. As Roswell had pointed out the perfect absence of 
wind, the smoothness of the water, and the appearances of 
a severe frost, or cold, for frost there was now, almost at 
midday, the men came reluctantly over to his view of the 
matter, and consented to work instead of sleeping. The 
toil, however, could be much lessened, by dividing the 
crew into the customary watches. All that Roswell aimed 
at was to get his schooner about a league from the cove, 
which would be taking her without a line drawn from cape 
to cape, the greatest danger of new ice being within the 
curvature of the crescent. This he thought might easily 
21 


822 


THE SEA LIONS. 


he done in the course of a few hours ; and, should there 
come any wind, much sooner. On explaining this to the 
erew, the men were satisfied. 

Roswell Gardiner felt as if a load were taken off his 
spirits, when his schooner was clear of the ground, and his 
mainsail was hoisted. A boat was got ahead, and the craft 
was slowly towed out of the cove, the canvas doing neither 
good nor harm. As the vessel passed that of Daggett, the • 
last was on deck ; the only person visible in the Vineyard 
craft. He wished his brother-master a good night, promis- 
ing to be out as soon as there was any light next morning. 

It would not be easy to imagine a more dreary scene 
than that in which Deacon Pratt’s schooner moved out into 
the waters that separated the different islands of this re- 
mote and sterile group. Roswell could just discern the 
frowning mass of the rocks that crowned the centre of 
Sealer’s Land ; and that was soon lost in the increasing 
obscurity. The cold was getting to be severe, and the men 
soon complained that ice was forming on the blades of their 
oars. Then it was that a thought occurred to our young 
mariner, which had hitherto escaped him. Of what use 
would it be for his vessel to be beyond the ice, if that of 
Daggett should be shut in the succeeding day ? So sensi- 
ble did he become to the importance of this idea, that he 
called in his boat, and pulled back into the cove, in order 
to make one more effort to persuade Daggett to follow him 
out. 

Gardiner found all of the Vineyarders turned in, even to 
their officers. The fatigue they had lately undergone, 
united to the cold, rendered the berths very agreeable ; and 
even Daggett begged his visitor would excuse him for not 
rising to receive his guest. Argument with a man thus 
.circumstanced and so disposed, was absolutely useless. 
After remaining a short time with Daggett, Roswell re- 
turned to his own schooner. As he pulled back, he ascer* 
tained that ice was fast making ; and the boat actually cut 
its way through a thin skim, ere it reached the vessel. 

Our hero was now greatly concerned lest he should be 
frozen in himself, ere he could gdt into the more open 


THE SEA LIONS. 


323 


water of the bay. Fortunately a light air sprung up from 
the northward, and trimming his sails, Gardiner succeeded 
in carrying his craft to a point where the undulations of 
the grounds well gave the assurance of her being outside 
the segment of the crescent. Then he brailed his foresail, 
hauled the jib-sheet over, lowered his gaff, and put his 
helm hard down. After this, all the men were permitted 
to seek their berths ; the officers looking out for the craft 
in turns. 

It wanted about an hour of day, when the second mate 
gave Roswell a call, according to orders. The young 
master found no wind, but an intensely cold morning, on 
going on deck. Ice had formed on every part of the rig- 
ging and sides of the schooner where water had touched 
them ; though the stillness of the night, by preventing the 
spray from flying, was much in favor of the navigators in 
this respect. On thrusting a boat-hook down, Roswell 
ascertained that the bay around him had a skim of ice 
nearly an inch in thickness. This caused him great uneasi- 
ness ; and he waited with the greatest anxiety for the re- 
turn of light, in order to observe the condition of Daggett. 

Sure enough, when the day came out distinctly, it was 
seen that ice of sufficient thickness to bear men on it, 
covered the entire surface within the crescent. Daggett 
and his people were already at work on it, using the saw. 
They must have taken the alarm before the return of day ; 
for the schooner was not only free from the ground, but 
had been brought fully a cable’s length without the cove. 
Gardiner watched the movements of Daggett and his 
crew with a glass for a short time, when he ordered all 
hands called. The cook was already in the galley, and a 
warm breakfast was soon prepared. After eating this, the 
two whaleboats were lowered, and Roswell and Hazard 
both rowed as far as the ice would permit them, when 
they walked the rest of the way to the imprisoned craft, 
taking with them most of their hands, together with the 
Baw. 

It was perhaps fortunate for Daggett that it soon begafi. 
to blow fresh from the northward, sending into the bay a 


824 


THE SEA LIONS. 


considerable sea, which soon broke up the ice, and enabled 
the Vineyard craft to force her way through the fragments, 
and join her consort about noon. 

Glad enough was Roswell to regain his own vessel ; and 
he made sail on a wind, determined to beat out of the nar- 
row waters at every hazard, the experience of that night 
having told him that they had remained in the cove too 
long. Daggett followed willingly, but not like a man who 
had escaped by the skin of his teeth, from wintering near 
the antarctic circle. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


325 


CHAPTER XXII. 

Beside the Moldau’s rushing stream, 

With the wan moon overhead, 

There stood, as in an awful dream, 

The army of the dead. 

Longfellow. 

Most of our readers will understand what was meant by 
Mary Pratt’s “ inclination of the earth’s axis to the plane 
of its orbit;” but as there may be a few who do not, and 
as the consequences of this great physical fact are mate- 
rially connected with the succeeding events of the narra- 
tive, we propose to give such a homely explanation of the 
phenomenon as we humbly trust will render it clear to the 
most clouded mind. The orbit of the earth is the path 
which it follows in space in its annual revolution around 
the sun. To a planet there is no up or down, except as 
ascent and descent are estimated from and towards itself. 
In all other respects it floats in vacuum, or what is so 
nearly so as to be thus termed. Now, let the uninstructed 
reader imagine a large circular table, with a light on its 
surface, and near to its centre. The light shall represent 
the sun, the outer edge of the circle of the table the 
earth’s orbit, and its surface the plane of that orbit. In 
nature there is no such thing as a plane at all, the space 
within the orbit being vacant ; but the surface of the table 
gives a distinct notion of the general position of the earth 
as it travels round the sun. It is scarcely necessary to 
say that the axis of the earth is an imaginary line drawn 
through the planet, from one pole to the other ; the name 
being derived from the supposition that our daily revolu- 
tion is made on this axis. 

Now, the first thing that the student is to fix in his mind, 
in order to comprehend the phenomenon of the seasons, is 


326 


THE SEA LIONS. 


the leading fact that the earth does not change its attitude 
in space, if we may so express it, when it changes its posi- 
tion. If the axis were perpendicular to the plane of the 
orbit, this circumstance would not affect the temperature, 
as the simplest experiment will show. Putting the equator 
of a globe on the outer edge of the table, and holding it 
perfectly upright , causing it to turn on its axis as it passes 
round the circle, it would be found that the light from the 
centre of the table would illumine just one half of the 
globe, at all times and in all positions, cutting the two 
poles. Did this movement correspond with that of nature, 
the days and nights would be always of the same length, 
and there would be no changes of the seasons, the warmest 
weather being nearest to the equator, and the cold increas- 
ing as the poles were approached. Nowhere, however, 
would the cold be so intense as it now is, nor would the 
heat be as great as at present except at or quite near to 
the equator. The first fact would be owing to the regular 
return of the sun, once in twenty-four hours ; the last to 
the oblique manner in which its rays struck this orb, in 
all places but near its centre. 

But the globe ought not to be made to move around the 
table with its axis perpendicular to its surface, or to the 
u plane of the earth’s orbit.” In point of fact, the earth 
is inclined to this plane, and the globe should be placed at 
a corresponding inclination. Let the globe be brought to 
the edge of the table, at its south side, and with its upper 
or north pole inclining to the sun, and then commence the 
circuit, taking care always to keep this north pole of the 
globe pointing in the same direction, or to keep the globe 
itself in what we have termed a fixed attitude. As one 
half of the globe must always be in light, and the other 
half in darkness, this inclination from the perpendicular 
will bring the circle of light some distance beyond the 
north pole, when the globe is due south from the light, and 
will leave an equal space around the opposite pole without 
any light at all, or any light directly received. Now it is 
that what we have termed the fixed attitude of the globe 
begins to tell. If the north pole inclined towards the orbit 


THE SEA LIONS. 


327 

facing the rim of the table, the light would still cut the 
poles, the days and nights would still be equal, and there 
would be no changes in the seasons, though there would 
be a rival revolution of the globe, by causing it to turn 
once a year, shifting the poles end for end. The inclina- 
tion being to the surface of the table, or to the plane of 
the orbit, the phenomena that are known to exist are a 
consequence. Thus it is, that the change in the seasons is 
as much owing to the fixed attitude of the earth in space, 
as we have chosen to term its polar directions, as to the 
inclination of its axis. Neither would produce the phenom- 
ena without the assistance of the other, as our experi- 
ment with the table will show. 

Place, then, the globe at the south side of the rim of 
the table, with its axis inclining towards its surface, and 
its poles always pointing in the same general direction, not 
following the circuit of the orbit, and set it in motion to- 
wards the east, revolving rapidly on its axis as it moves, 
while directly south of the light, it would be found that 
the north pole would be illuminated, while no' revolution 
on the axis would bring the south pole within the circle of 
the light. This is 'when a line drawn from the axis of the 
globe would cut the lamp, were the inclination brought as 
low as the surface of the table. Next set the globe in 
motion, following the rim of the table, and proceeding to 
the east or right hand, keeping its axis always looking in 
the same general direction, or in an attitude that would be 
parallel to a north and south line drawn through the sun, 
were the inclination as low as the surface of the table. 
This movement would be, in one sense, sideways, the circle 
of light gradually lessening around the north pole, and ex- 
tending towards the south, as the globe proceeded east and 
north, diminishing the length of the days in the northern 
hemisphere, and increasing them in the southern. When 
at east, the most direct rays of the light would fall on the 
equator, and the light would cut the two poles, rendering 
the days and nights equal. As the globe moved north, the 
circle of light would be found to increase around the south 
pole, while none at all touched the north. When on the 


828 


THE SEA LIONS. 


north side of the table, the northern po_e of the globe 
would incline so far from the sun as to leave a space 
around it in shadow that would be of precisely the same 
siz."' as had been the space of light when it was placed on 
the opposite side of the table. Going round the circle 
west, the same phenomena would be seen, until coming 
directly south of the lamp, the north pole would again 
come into light altogether, and the south equally into 
shadow 

Owing to this very simple but very wonderful provision 
of divine power and wisdom, this earth enjoys the relief of 
the changes in the seasons, as well as the variations in the 
length of the day. For one half of the year, or from 
equinox to equinox, from the time when the globe is at a 
due west point of the table until it reaches the east, the 
north pole would always receive the light, in a circle around 
it, that would gradually increase and diminish ; and for the 
other half, the same would be true of the other hemisphere. 
Of course there is a precise point on the earth where this 
polar illumination ceases. The shape of the illuminated 
part is circular ; and placing the point of a pencil on the 
globe at the extremest spot on the circle, holding it there 
while the globe is turned on its axis, the lines made would 
just include the portions of the earth around the globe that 
thus receives the rays of the sun at midsummer. These 
lines compose what are termed the arctic and antarctic 
circles, with the last of which our legend has now a most 
serious connection. After all, we are by no means certain 
that we have made our meaning as obvious as we could 
wish, it being very difficult to explain phenomena of this 
nature clearly, without actually experimenting. 

It is usual to say that there are six months day and six 
months night in the polar basins. This is true, literally, 
at the poles only ; but, approximatively, it is true as a 
whole. We apprehend that few persons — none, perhaps, 
but those who are in habits of study — form correct notions 
of the extent of what may be termed the icy seas. As the 
polar circles are in 23° 28", a ^line drawn through the 
•outh pole, for instance, commencing on one side of the 


THE SEA LIONS. 


329 


earth at the antarctic circle, and extending to the other, 
would traverse a distance materially exceeding that between 
New York and Lisbon. This would make those frozen re- 
gions cover a portion of this globe that is almost as large as 
the whole of the Atlantic Ocean, as far south as the equator. 
Any one can imagine what must be the influence of frost 
over so vast a surface, in reproducing itself, since the pres- 
ence of icebergs is thought to affect our climate, when 
many of them drift far south in summer. As power pro- 
duces power, riches wealth, so does cold produce cold. Fill, 
then, in a certain degree, a space as large as the North 
Atlantic Ocean, with ice in all its varieties, fixed, mountain 
and field, berg and floe, and one may get a tolerably accu- 
rate notion of the severity of its winters, when the sun is 
scarce seen above the horizon at all, and then only to shed 
its rays so obliquely as to be little better than a chill-look- 
ing orb of light, placed in the heavens simply to divide the 
day from the night. 

This, then, was the region that Roswell Gardiner was 
so very anxious to leave ; the winter he so much dreaded. 
Mary Pratt was before him, to say nothing of his duty to 
the deacon ; while behind him was the vast polar ocean 
just described, about to be veiled in the freezing obscurity 
of its long and gloomy twilight, if not of absolute night. 
No wonder, therefore, that when he trimmed his sails that 
evening, to beat out of the great bay, that it was done with 
the earnestness with which we all perform duties of the 
highest import, when they are known to affect our well- 
being, visibly and directly. 

“ Keep her a good full, Mr. Hazard,” said Roswell, as 
he was leaving the deck, to take the first sleep in which he 
had indulged for four-and-twenty hours ; “ and let her go 
through the water. We are behind our time, and must 
keep in motion. Give me a call if anything like ice ap- 
pears in a serious way.” 

Hazard “ ay-ay’d ” this order, as usual, buttoned his pee- 
jacket tighter than ever, and saw his young superior — the 
transcendental delicacy of the day is causing the difference 
in rank to be termed “ senior and junior” — but Hazard 


330 


THE SEA LIONS. 


saw his superior go below, with a feeling allied to envy, so 
heavy were his eyelids with the want of rest. Stimson 
was in the first mate’s watch, and the latter approached 
that old sea-dog With a wish to keep himself awake by con- 
versing. 

“ You seem as wide awake, king Stephen,” the mate re- 
marked, “ as if you never felt drowsy ! ” 

“ This is not a part of the world for hammocks and 
berths, Mr. Hazard,” was the reply. “ I can get along, 
and must get along, with a quarter part of the sleep in 
these seas as would sarve me in a low latitude.” 

“ And I feel as if I wanted all I can get. Them fellows 
look up well into our wake, Stephen.” 

“ They do indeed, sir, and they ought to do it ; for we 
have been longer than is for our good, in their’n.” 

“Well, now we have got a fresh start, I hope we may 
make a clear run of it. I saw no ice worth speaking of, to 
the nor’ard here, before we made sail.” 

“ Because you see’d none, Mr. Hazard, is no proof there 
is none. Floe-ice can’t be seen at any great distance, 
though its blink may. But, it seems to me, it ’s all blink in 
these here seas ! ” 

“ There you ’re quite right, Stephen ; for turn which 
way you will, the horizon has a show of that sort” — 

“ Starboard ” — called out the lookout forward — “ keep 
her away — keep her away — there is ice ahead.” 

u Ice in here ! ” exclaimed Hazard, springing forward ; 
“ That is more than we bargained for ! Where away is 
your ice, Smith ? ” 

“ Off here, sir, on our weather bow — and a mortal big 
field of it — jist sich a chap as nipp’d the Vineyard Lion, 
when she first came in to join us. Sich a fellow as that 
would take the sap out of our bends, as a squeezer takes 
the juice from a lemon ! ” 

Smith was a carpenter by trade, which was probably the 
reason why he introduced this figure. Hazard saw the ice 
with regret ; for he had hoped to work the schooner fairly 
out to sea in his watch ; but the field was getting down 
through the passage in a way that threatened to cut off the 


THE SEA LIONS. 


331 


exit of the two schooners from the bay. Daggett kept 
close in his wake, a proof that this experienced navigator 
in such waters saw no means to turn farther to windward. 
As the wind was now abeam, both vessels drove rapidly 
ahead ; and in half an hour the northern point of the land 
they had so lately left came into view close aboard of them. 
Just then the moon rose, and objects became more clearly 
visible. 

Hazard hailed the Vineyard Lion, and demanded what 
was to be done. It was possible, by hauling close on a 
wind, to pass the cape a short distance to windward of it, 
and seemingly thus clear the floe. Unless this were done, 
both vessels would be compelled to wear, and run for the 
southern passage, which would carry them many miles to 
leeward, and might place them a long distance on the 
wrong side of the group. 

“ Is Captain Gar’ner on deck ? ” asked Daggett, who had 
now drawn close up on the lee quarter of his consort, 
Hazard having brailed his foresail and laid his topsail sharp 
aback, to enable him to do so. “ If he is n’t, I ’d advise 
you to give him a call at once.” 

This was done immediately; and while it*was doing, 
the Vineyard Lion swept past the Oyster Pond schooner. 
Roswell announced his presence on deck just as the other 
vessel cleared his bows. 

“ There ’s no time to consult, Gar’ner,” answered Dag- 
gett. “ There ’s our road before us. Go through it we 
must, or stay where we are until that field-ice gives us a 
jam down yonder in the crescent. I will lead, and you 
can follow as soon as your eyes are open.” 

One glance let Roswell into the secret of his situation. 
Pie liked it little, but he did not hesitate. 

“ Fill the topsail, and haul aft the foresheet,” were the 
quiet orders that proclaimed what he intended to do. 

Both vessels stood on. By some secret process, every 
man on board the two crafts became aware of what was 
going on, and appeared on deck. All hands were not 
called, nor was there any particular noise to attract atten- 
tion but the word had been whispered below that there 


332 


THE SEA LIONS. 


was a great risk to run. A risk it was, of a ve ity ! It was 
necessary to stand close along that iron-bound coast where 
the seals had so lately resorted, for a distance of several 
miles. The wind would not admit of the schooners’ steer- 
ing much more than a cable’s length from the rocks for 
quite a league ; after which the shore tended to the south- 
ward, and a little sea-room would be gained. But on those 
rocks the waves were then beating heavily, and their bel- 
lowings as they rolled into the cavities were at almost all 
times terrific. There was some relief, however, in the 
knowledge obtained of the shore, by having frequently 
passed up and down it in the boats. It was known that 
the water was deep close to the visible rocks, and that 
there was no danger as long as a vessel could keep off 
them. 

No one spoke. Every eye was strained to discern ob 
jects ahead, or was looking astern to trace the expected 
collision between the floe-ice and the low promontory of 
the cape.^ The ear soon gave notice that this meeting had 
already taken place ; for the frightful sound that attended 
the cracking and rending of the field might have been 
heard fully* a league. Now it was that each schooner did 
her best ! Yards were braced up, sheets flattened, and the 
helm tended. The close proximity of the rocks on the 
one side, and the secret presentiment of there being more 
field-ice on the other, kept every one wide awake. The 
two masters, in particular, were all eyes and ears. It was 
getting to be very cold ; and the sort of shelter aloft that 
goes by the quaint name of “ crow’s-nest,” had been fitted 
up in each vessel. A mate was now sent into each, to 
ascertain what might be discovered to windward. Almost 
at the same instant, these young seamen hailed their re- 
spective decks, and gave notice that a wide field was com- 
ing in upon them, and must eventually crush them, unless 
avoided. This startling intelligence reached the two com- 
manders in the very same moment. The emergency de- 
manded decision, and each man acted for himself. Roswell 
ordered his helm put down , and his schooner tacked. The 
water was not rough enough to prevent the success of the 


THE SEA LIONS. 


333 


manoeuvre. On the other hand, Daggett kept a rap full, 
and stood on. Roswell manifested the most judgment and 
seamanship. He was now far enough from the cape to 
beat to windward ; and, by going nearer to the enemy, he 
might always run along its southern boundary, profit by 
any opening, and would be by as much as he could thus 
gain, to windward of the coast. Daggett had one advan- 
tage. By standing on, in the event of a return becoming 
necessary, he would gain in time. In ten minutes the two 
schooners were a mile asunder. We shall first follow that 
of Roswell Gardiner’s, in his attempt to escape. 

The first floe, which was ripping and tearing one of its 
angles into fragments, as it came grinding down on the cape, 
soon compelled the vessel to tack. Making short reaches, 
Roswell ere long found himself fully a mile to windward 
of the rocks, and sufficiently near to the new floe to discern 
its shape, drift, and general character. Its eastern end had 
lodged upon the field that first came in, and was adding to 
the vast momentum with which that enormous floe was 
pressing down upon the cape. Large as was that first 
visitor to the bay, this was of at least twice if not of thrice 
its dimensions. What gave Roswell the most concern was 
the great distance that this field extended to the westward. 
He went up into the crow’s-nest himself, and, aided by the 
light of a most brilliant moon, and a sky without a cloud, 
he could perceive the blink of ice in that direction, as he 
fancied, for fully two leagues. What was unusual, perhaps, 
at that early season of the year, these floes did not consist 
of a vast collection of numberless cakes of ice ; but the 
whole field, so far as could then be ascertained, was firm 
and united. The nights were now so cold that ice made 
fast wherever there was water ; and it occurred to our 
young master that, possibly, fragments that had once been 
separated and broken by the waves, might have become 
reunited by the agency of the frost. Roswell descended 
from the crow’s-nest half chilled by a cutting wind, though 
it blew from a warm quarter. Summoning his mates, he 
asked their advice. 

“ It seems to me, Captain Gar’ner,” Hazard replied, 


334 


THE SEA LIONS. 


* there ’s very little choice. Here we are, so far as I can 
make it out, embayed, and we have only to box about until 
daylight comes, when some chance may turn up to help us. 
If so, we must turn it to account ; if not, we must make up 
our mind? to winter here.” 

This was coolly and calmly said ; though it was clear 
enough that Hazard was quite in earnest. 

“ You forget there may be an open passage to the west- 
ward, Mr. Hazard,” Roswell rejoined, “ and that we may 
yet pass out to sea by it. Captain Daggett is already out 
of sight in the western board, and we may do well to stand 
on after him.” 

“ Ay, ay, sir — I know all that, Captain Gar’ner, and it 
may be as you say, but when I was aloft, half an hour 
since, if there wasn’t the blink of ice in that direction, 
quite round to the back of the island, there was n’t the 
blink of ice nowhere hereabouts. I ’m used to the sight 
of it, and can’t well be mistaken.” 

“ There is always ice on that side of the land, Hazard, 
and you may have seen the blink of the bergs which have 
hugged the cliffs in that quarter all summer. Still, that is 
not proving we shall find no outlet. This craft can go 
through a very small passage, and we must take care and 
find one in proper time. Wintering here is out of the 
question. A hundred reasons tell us not to think of such 
a thing, besides the interests of our owners. We are walk- 
ing along this floe pretty fast, though I think the vessel is 
too much by the head : don’t it strike you so, Hazard ? ” 

“ Lord, sir, it ’s nothing but the ice that has made, and 
is making for’ard !. Before we got so near the field as to 
find a better lee, the little Upper that came athwart our 
bows froze almost as soon as it wet us. I do suppose, sir, 
there are now several tons of ice on our bows, counting 
from channel to channel, forward.” 

On an examination this proved to be true, and the knowl- 
edge of the circumstance did not at all contribute to Gar- 
diner’s feeling of security. He saw there was no time to 
be lost, and he crowded sail with a view of forcing the 
vessel past the dangers if possible, and of getting her into 


THE SEA LIONS. 


335 


a milder climate. But even a fast-sailing schooner will 
scarcely equal our wishes under such circumstances. There 
was no doubt that the Sea Lion’s speed was getting to be 
affected by the manner in which her bows were weighed 
down by ice, in addition to the discomfort produced by 
cold, damp, and the presence of a slippery substance on the 
deck and rigging. Fortunately there was not much spray 
flying, or matters would have been much worse. As it 
was, they were bad enough, and very ominous of future 
evil. 

While the Sea Lion of Oyster Pond was running along 
the margin of the ice in the manner just described, and 
after the blink to the westward had changed to a visible 
field, making it very uncertain whether any egress was to 
be found in that quarter or not, an opening suddenly ap- 
peared trending to the northward, and sufficiently wide, as 
Roswell thought, to enable him to beat through it. Put- 
ting his helm down, his schooner came heavily round, and 
was filled on a course that soon carried her half a mile into 
this passage. At first, everything seemed propitious, the 
channel rather opening than otherwise, while the course was 
such — north-northwest — as enabled the vessel to make 
very long legs on one tack, and that the best. After going 
about four or five times, however, all these flattering symp- 
toms suddenly changed, by the passage’s terminating in a 
cul de sac. Almost at the same instant the ice closed 
rapidly in the schooner’s wake. An effort was made to 
run back, but it failed in consequence of an enormous floe’s 
turning on its centre, having met resistance from a field 
closer in, that was, in its turn, stopped by the rocks. “Ros- 
well saw at once that nothing could be done at the moment. 
He took in all his canvas, as well as the frozen cloth could 
be handled, got out ice-anchors, and hauled his vessel into a 
species of cove where there would be the least danger of a 
nip, should the fields continue to close. 

All this time Daggett was as busy as a bee. He rounded 
the headland, and flattered himself that he was about to 
slip past all the rocks, and get out into open water, when 
the vast fields of which the blink had been seen even by 


336 


THE SEA LIONS. 


those in the other vessel, suddenly stretched themselves 
across his course in a way that set at defiance all attempts 
to go any farther in that direction. Daggett wore round, 
and endeavored to return. This was by no means as easy 
as it was to go down before the wind, and his bows were 
also much encumbered with ice ; more so, indeed, than 
those of the other schooner. Once or twice his craft missed 
stays in consequence of getting so much by the head, and 
it was deemed necessary to heave-to, and take to the axes. 
A great deal of extra and cumbrous weight was gotten rid 
of, but an hour of most precious time was lost. 

By the time Daggett was ready to make sail again, he 
found his return round the headland was entirely cut off, 
by the field’s having come in absolute contact with the 
rocks ! 

It was now midnight, and the men on board both vessels 
required rest. A watch was set in each, and most of the 
people were permitted to turn in. Of course, proper look- 
outs were had, but the light of the moon was not sufficiently 
distinct to render it safe to make any final efforts under its 
favor. No great alarm was felt, there being nothing un- 
usual in a vessel’s being embayed in the ice ; and so long 
as she was not nipped or pressed upon by actual contact, 
the position was thought safe rather than the reverse. It 
was desirable, moreover, for the schooners to communicate 
with each other ; for some advantage might be known to 
one of the masters that was concealed by distance from 
his companion. Without concert, therefore, Roswell and 
Daggett came to the same general conclusions, and waited 
patiently. 

The day came at last, cold and dreary, though not alto- 
gether without the relief of an air that blew from regions 
far warmer than the ocean over which it was now travel- 
ing. Then the two schooners became visible from each 
other, and Roswell saw the jeopardy of Daggett, and Dag- 
gett saw the jeopardy of Roswell. The vessels were little 
more than a mile apart, but the situation of the Vineyard 
Lion was much the most critical. She had made fast to 
the floe, but her support itself was in a steady and most 


THE SEA LIONS. 


337 


imposing motion. As soon as Roswell saw the manner in 
which his consort was surrounded, and the very threatening 
aspect of the danger that pressed upon him, his first impulse 
was to hasten to him, with a party of his own people, to 
offer any assistance he could give. After looking at the 
ice immediately around his own craft, where all seemed to 
be right, he called over the names of six of his men, or- 
dered them to eat a warm breakfast, and to prepare to ac- 
company him. 

In twenty minutes Roswell was leading his little party 
across the ice, each man carrying an axe, or some other 
implement that it was supposed might be of use. It was 
by no means difficult to proceed ; for the surface of the 
floe, one seemingly more than a league in extent, was quite 
smooth, and the snow on it was crusted to a strength that 
would have borne a team. 

“ The water between the ice and the rocks is a much 
narrower strip than I had thought,” said Roswell, to his 
constant attendant, Stimson. “ Here, it does not appear to 
be a hundred yards in width ! ” 

“ Nor is it, sir — whew — this trotting in so cold a cli- 
mate makes a man puff like a whale blowing — but, Cap- 
tain Gar’ner, that schooner will be cut in two before we 
can get to her. Look, sir ; the floe has reached the rocks 
already, quite near her ; and it does not stop the drift at 
all, seemingly.” 

Roswell made no reply; the state of the Vineyard Lion 
did appear to be much more critical than he had previously 
imagined. Until he came nearer to the land, he had formed 
no notion of the steady power with which the field was set- 
ting down on the rocks on which the broken fragments 
were now creeping like creatures endowed with life. Oc- 
casionally, there would be loud disruptions, and the move- 
ment of the floe would become more rapid ; then, again, a 
sort of pause would succeed, and for a moment the approach- 
ing party felt a gleam of hope. But all expectations of 
this sort were doomed to be disappointed. 

« Look, sir ! ” exclaimed Stimson ; “ she went down afore 
22 


838 


THE SEA LIONS v 


it twenty fathoms at that one set. She must be awful near 
the rocks, sir ! ” 

All the men now stopped. They knew they were power- 
less; and intense anxiety rendered them averse to move. 
Attention appeared to interfere with their walking on the 
ice ; and each held his breath in expectation. They saw 
that the schooner, then less than a cable’s length from them, 
was close to the rocks ; and the next shock, if anything 
like the last, must overwhelm her. To their astonishment, 
instead of being nipped, the schooner rose by a stately 
movement that was not without grandeur, upheld by broken 
cakes that had got beneath her bottom, and fairly reached 
the shelf of rocks almost unharmed. Not a man had left 
her ; but there she was, placed on the shore, some twenty 
feet above the surface of the sea, on rocks worn smooth by 
the action of the waves ! Had the season been propitious, 
and did the injury stop here, it might have been possible to 
get the craft into the water again, and still carry her to 
America. 

But the floe was not yet arrested. Cake succeeded cake, 
one riding over another, until a wall of ice rose along the 
shore, that Roswell and his companions, with all their ac- 
tivity and courage, had great difficulty in crossing. They 
succeeded in getting over it, however ; but when they 
reached the unfortunate schooner, she was literally buried. 
The masts were broken, the sails torn, rigging scattered, 
and sides stove. The Sea Lion of Martha’s Vineyard was 
a worthless wreck — worthless as to all purposes but that 
cf being converted into materials for a smaller craft, or to 
be used as fuel. 

All this had been done in ten minutes ! Then it was 
that the vast superiority of nature over the resources of 
man made itself apparent. The people of the two vessels 
stood aghast with this sad picture of their own insignificance 
before their eyes. The crew of the wreck, it is true, had 
escaped without difficulty ; the movement having been as 
slow and steady as it was irresistible. But there they were, 
in the clothes they had on, with all their effects buried 


THE SEA LIONS. 339 

under piles of ice that were already thirty or forty feet in 
height. * 

“ She looks as if she was built there, Gar’ner ! ” Daggett 
coolly observed, as he stood regarding the scene with eyes 
as intently riveted on the wreck as human organs were ever 
fixed on any object. “ Had a man told me this could hap- 
pen, I would not have believed him ! ” 

“ Had she been a three-decker, this ice would have 
treated her in the same way. There is a force in such a 
field that walls of stone could not withstand.” 

“ Captain Gar’ner — Captain Garner,” called out Stim- 
son, hastily ; “ we ’d better go back, sir ; our own craft is 
in danger. She is drifting fast in towards the cape, and 
may reach it afore we can get to her ! ” 

Sure enough, it was so. In one of the changes that are 
so unaccountable among the ice, the floe had taken a sud- 
den and powerful direction towards the entrance of the 
Great Bay. It was probably owing to the circumstance 
v.hat the inner field had forced its way past the cape, and 
made room for its neighbor to follow. A few of Daggett’s 
people, with Daggett himself, remained to see what might 
yet be saved from the wreck ; but all the rest of the men 
started for the cape, towards which the Oyster Pond craft 
was now directly setting. The distance was less than a 
league ; and, as yet, there was not much snow on the rocks. 
By taking an upper shelf, it was possible to make pretty 
good progress ; and such was the manner of Roswell’s pres- 
ent march. 

It was an extraordinary sight to see the coast along 
which our party was hastening, just at that moment. As 
the cakes of ice were broken from the field, they were 
driven upward by the vast pressure from without, and the 
whole line of the shore seemed as if alive with creatures 
that were issuing from the ocean to clamber on the rocks. 
Roswell had often seen that very coast peopled with seals, 
as it now appeared to be in activity with fragments of ice, 
that were writhing and turning, and rising, one upon an- 
other, as if possessed of the vital principle. 

In half an hour Roswell and his party reached the house. 


340 


THE SEA LIONS. 


The schooner was then less than half a mile from the spot, 
still setting in, along with the outer field, but not nipped. 
So far from being in danger of such a calamity, the little 
basin in which she lay had expanded, instead of closing ; 
and it would have been possible to handle a quick-working 
craft in it, under her canvas. An exit, however, was quite 
out of the question ; there being no sign of any passage to 
or from that icy dock. There the craft still lay, anchored 
to the weather floe, while the portion of her crew which 
remained on board was as anxiously watching the coast as 
those who were on the’coast watGhed her. At first, Ros- 
well gave his schooner up ; but on closer examination found 
reason to hope that she might pass the rocks, and enter the 
inner, rather than the Great Bay. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


341 


CHAPTER XXIII. 

To prayer: for the glorious sun is gone, 

And the gathering darkness of night comes on ; 

Like a curtain from God’s kind hand it flows, 

To shade the couch where his children repose. 

Then kneel, while the watching stars are bright, 

And give your last thoughts to the guardian of night. 

Ware. 

Desolate, indeed, and nearly devoid of hope, had the 
situation of our sealers now become. It was midday, and 
it was freezing everywhere in the shade. A bright genial 
sun was shedding its glorious rays on the icy panorama ; 
but it was so obliquely as to be of hardly any use in dis- 
pelling the frosts. Far as the eye could see, even from the 
elevation of the cape, there was nothing but ice, with the 
exception of that part of the Great Bay into which the floe 
had not yet penetrated. To the southward, there stood 
clustering around the passage a line of gigantic -bergs, 
placed like sentinels, as if purposely to stop all egress in 
v ,hat direction. The water had lost its motion in the shift 
Df wind, and new ice had formed over the whole bay, as 
was evident by a white sparkling line that preceded the 
irresistible march of the floe. 

As Roswell gazed on this scene, serious doubts dark- 
ened his mind as to his escaping from this frozen chain un- 
til the return of another summer. It is true that a south 
wind might possibly produce a change, and carry away the 
blockading mass; but every moment rendered this so much 
the less probable. Winter, or what would be deemed win- 
ter in most regions, was already setting in ; and should 
the ice really become stationary in and around the group, 
all hope of its moving must vanish for the next eight 
months. 

Daggett reached the house about an hour before sunset- 


342 


THE SEA LIONS. 


He had succeeded in cutting a passage through the ice as 
far as the cabin-door of his unfortunate schooner, -when 
there was no difficulty in descending into the interior parts 
of the vessel. The whole party came in staggering under 
heavy loads. Pretty much as a matter of course, each 
man brought his own effects. Clothes, tobacco, rum, small 
stores, bedding, quadrants, and similar property, was that 
first attended to. At that moment, little was thought of 
the skins and oil. The cargo was neglected, while the 
minor articles had been early sought. 

Roswell was on board his own schooner, now again in . 
dangerous proximity to the cape. She was steadily setting 
in, when Daggett rejoined him. The crew of the lost ves- 
sel remained in the house, where they lighted a fire and 
deposited their goods, returning to the wreck for another 
load, taking the double sets of wheels along with them. 
When the two masters met, they conferred together ear- 
nestly, receiving into their councils such of the officers as 
were on board. The security of the remaining vessel was 
now all-important ! and it was not to be concealed that 
she was in imminent jeopardy. The course taken by the 
floe was directly towards the most rugged part of Cape 
Hazard ; and the rate of the movement such as to threaten 
a very speedy termination of the matter. There was one 
circumstance, however, and only that one, which offered a 
single chance of escape. The opening around the schooner 
still existed in part, about half of it having been lost in 
the collision with the outermost point of the rocks. It 
was this species of vacuum that, by removing all resist- 
ance at that particular spot, indeed, which had given the 
field its most dangerous cant, turning the movement of 
the vessel towards the rocks. The chance, therefore, ex- 
isted in the possibility — and it was little more than a bare 
possibility — of moving the schooner in that small area of 
open water, and of taking her far enough south to clear 
the most southern extremity of the wall of stone that pro- 
tected the cove. As yet, this open water did not extend 
far enough to admit of the schooner’s being taken to the 
point in question ; but it was slowly tending in that direc- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


343 


tion, and did not the basin close altogether ere that desir- 
able object was achieved, the vessel might yet be saved. 
In order, however, to do this, it would be necessary to cut 
a sort of dock or slip in the ice of the cove, into which 
the craft might shoot, as a place of refuge. Once within 
the cove, fairly behind the point of the rocks, there would 
be perfect safety ; if suffered to drift to the southward of 
that shelter, this schooner would probably be lost like her 
consort, and very much in the same manner. 

Gardiner now sent a gang of hands to the desired point, 
armed with saws, and the slip was commenced. The ice 
in the cove was still only two or three inches thick, and 
the work went bravely on. Instead of satisfying himself 
with cutting a passage merely behind the point of rock, 
Hazard opened one quite up into the cove, to the precise 
place where the schoouer had been so long at anchor. 
Just as the sun was setting the crisis arrived. So heavy 
had been the movement towards the rocks, that Roswell 
saw he could delay no longer. Were he to continue where 
he was, a projection on the cape would prevent his passage 
to the entrance of the cove ; he would be shut in, and he 
might be certain that the Sea Lion would be crushed if 
the floe pressed home upon the shore. The ice-anchors 
were cut out accordingly, the jib was hoisted, and the 
schooner wore short round on her heel. The space be- 
tween the floe and the projection in the rocks just named, 
did not now exceed a hundred feet; and it was lessening 
fast. Much more roc^n existed on each side of this par- 
ticular excrescence in the rugged coast, the space north 
being still considerable, while that to the southward might 
be a hundred yards in width ; the former of these areas 
being owing to the form of the basin, and the latter to the 
shape of the shore. 

In the first of the basins named, the schooner wore 
short round on her heel, her foresail being set to help her. 
A breathless moment passed as she ran down towards the 
narrow strait. It was quickly reached, and that none too 
soon ; the opening now not exceeding sixty feet. The 
yards of the vessel almost brushed the rocks in passing; 


344 


THE SEA LIONS. 


but she went clear. As soon as in the lower basin, as one 
might call it, the jib and foresail were taken in, and the 
head of the mainsail was got on the craft. This helped 
her to luff up towards the slip, which she reached under 
sufficient headway fairly to enter it. Lines were thrown 
to the people on the ice, who soon hauled the schooner up 
to the head of her frozen dock. Three cheers broke 
spontaneously out of the throats of the men, as they thus 
achieved the step which assured them of the safety of the 
vessel, so far as the ice was concerned ! In this way do 
we estimate our advantages and disadvantages, by compar- 
ison. In the abstract, the situation of the sealers was still 
sufficiently painful ; though compared with what it would 
have been with the other schooner wrecked, it was secu- 
rity itself. 

By this time it was quite dark ; and a day of excite- 
ment and fatigue required a night of rest. After supping, 
the men turned in ; the Vineyarders mostly in the house, 
where they occupied their old bunks. When the moon 
rose, the party from the wreck arrived, with their carts 
well loaded, and themselves half frozen, notwithstanding 
their toil. In a short time, all were buried in sleep. 

When Roswell Gardiner* came on deck next morning, 
his first glance told him hew little was the chance of his 
party’s returning north that season. The strange floe had 
driven into the Great Bay, completely covering its surface, 
lining the shores far and near with broken and glittering 
cakes of ice ; and, as it were, hermetically sealing the 
place against all egress. New ice, an inch or two thick, or 
even six or eight inches thick, might have been sawed 
through, and a passage cut even for a league, should it be 
necessary. Such things were sometimes done, and great 
as would have been the toil, our sealers would have at- 
tempted it, in preference to running the risk of passing a 
winter in that region. But almost desperate as would 
have been even that source of refuge, the party was com- 
pletely cut off from its possession. To think of sawing 
through ice as thick as that of the floe, for any material 
distance, would be like a project to tunnel the Alps. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


345 


Melancholy was the meeting between Roswell and Dag- 
gett that morning. The former was too manly and gener- 
ous to indulge in reproaches, else might he well have told 
the last that all this was owing to him. There is a singular 
propensity in us all to throw the burden of our own blun- 
ders on the shoulders of other folk. Roswell had a little 
of this weakness, overlooking the fact that he was his own 
master ; and as he had come to the group by himself, he 
ought to have left it in the same manner, as soon as his 
own particular work was accomplished. But Roswell did 
not see this quite as distinctly as he saw the fact that Dag- 
gett’s detentions and indirect appeals to his better feelings 
had involved him in all these difficulties. Still, while thus 
he felt, he made no complaint. 

All hope of getting north that season now depended on 
the field-ice’s drifting away from the Great Bay before it 
got fairly frozen in. So jammed and crammed with it did 
every part of the bay appear to be, however, that little 
could be expected from that source of relief. This Dag- 
gett admitted in the conversation he held with Roswell, as 
soon as the latter joined him on the rocky terrace beneath 
the house. 

“ The wisest thing we can do, then,” replied our hero, 
a will be to make as early preparations as possible to meet 
the winter. If we are to remain here, a day gained now 
will be worth a week a month hence. If we should hap- 
pily escape, the labor thus expended will not kill us.” 

“ Quite true — very much as you say, certainly,” an- 
swered Daggett, musing. “T was thinking as you came 
ashore, Gar’ner, if a lucky turn might not be made in this 
wise : I have a good many skins in the wreck, you see, 
and you have a good deal of ile in your hold — now, by 
starting some of that ile, and pumping it out, and shooking 
the casks, room might be made aboard of you for all my 
skins. I think we could run all of the last over on them 
wheels in the course of a week.” 

“ Captain Daggett, it is by yielding so much to your 
skins that we have got into all this trouble.” 

“ Skins, measure for measure, in the way of tonnage, 
will bring a great deal more than ile.” 


346 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Roswell smiled, and muttered something to himself, a 
little bitterly He was thinking of the grievous disap- 
pointment and prolonged anxiety that it pained him to be- 
lieve Mary would feel at his failure to return home at the 
appointed time ; though it would probably have pained 
him more to believe she would not thus be disappointed 
and anxious. Here his displeasure, or its manifestation, 
eeased ; and the young man turned his thoughts on the 
present necessities of his situation. 

Daggett appearing very earnest on the subject of re- 
moving his skins before the snows came to impede the 
path, Roswell could urge no objection that would be likely 
to prevail ; but his acquiescence was obtained by means 
of a hint from Stimson, who by this time had gained his 
officer’s ear. 

“ Let him do it, Captain Gar’ner,” said the boat-steerer, 
in an aside, speaking respectfully, but earnestly. “ He ’ll 
never stow ’em in our hold, this season at least ; but they ’ll 
make excellent filling-in for the sides of this hut.” 

“ You think then, Stephen, that we are likely to pass 
the winter here ? ” 

“ We are in the hands of Divine Providence, sir, which 
will do with us as seems the best in the eyes of never-fail- 
ing wisdom. At all events, Captain Gar’ner, I think ’t will 
be safest to act at once as if we had the winter afore us. 
In my judgment, this house might be made a good deal 
more comfortable for us all, in such a case, than our craft ; 
for we should not only have more room, but might have as 
many fires as we want, and more than we can find fuel 
for.” 

“ Ay, there ’s the difficulty, Stephen. Where are we to 
find wood, throughout a polar winter, for even one fire ? ” 

“We must be saving, sir, and thoughtful, and keep our- 
selves warm as much as we can by exercise. I have had 
a taste of this once, in a small way, already ; and know 
what ought to be done, in many partic’lars. In the first 
place, the men must keep themselves as clean as water will 
make them — dirt is a great helper of cold — and the 
water must be just as frosty as human natur’ can bear it. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


347 


This will set everything into actyve movement inside, and 
bring out warmth from the heart, as it might be. That ’s 
my principle of keeping warm, Captain Gar’ner 

“ I dare say it may be a pretty good one, Stephen,” an- 
swered Roswell, “ and we ’ll bear it in mind. As for 
stoves we are well enough off, for there is one in the house, 
and a good large one it is; then, there is a stove in each 
cabin, and there are the two cambooses. If we had fuel 
for them all, I should feel no concern on the score of 
warmth.” 

“ There ’s the wrack, sir. By cutting her up at once, 
we should get wood enough, in my judgment, to see it 
out.” 

Roswell made no reply ; but he looked intently at the 
boat-steerer for half a minute. The idea was new to him ; 
and the more he thought on the subject, the greater was 
the confidence it gave him in the result. Daggett, he well 
knew, would not consent to the mutilation of his schooner, 
wreck as it was, so long as the most remote hope existed 
of getting her again into the water. The tenacity with 
which this man clung to property was like that which is 
imputed to the life of the cat ; and it was idle to expect 
any concessions from him on a subject like that. Never- 
theless, necessity is a hard master ; and if the question 
were narrowed down to one of burning the materials of a 
vessel that was in the water, and in good condition, and 
of burning those of one that was out of the water, with 
holes cut through her bottom in several places, and other- 
wise so situated as to render repairs extremely difficult, if 
not impossible, even Daggett would be compelled to submit 
to circumstances. 

It was accordingly suggested to the people of the Vine- 
yard Lion that they could do no better than to begin at 
once to remove everything they could come at, and which 
could be transported from the wreck to the house. As 
there was little to do on board the vessel afloat, her crew 
cheerfully offered to assist in this labor. The days were 
shortening sensibly and fast, and no time was to be lost, 
the distance being so great as to make two trips a day a 


348 


THE SEA LIONS. 


matter of great labor. No sooner was the plan adop**>d, 
therefore, than steps were taken to set about its execution. 

It is unnecessary for us to dwell minutely on everything 
that occurred during the succeeding week or ten days. 
The wind shifted to the southwest the very day that the 
Sea Lion got back into her little harbor ; and this seemed 
to put a sudden check on the pressure of the vast floe. 
Nevertheless, there was no counter-movement, the ice re- 
maining in the Great Bay seemingly as firmly fastened as 
if it had originally been made there. Notwithstanding this 
shift of the wind to a cold point of the compass, the ther- 
mometer rose, and it thawed freely about the middle of the 
day, in all places to which the rays of the sun had access. 
This enabled the men to work with more comfort than 
they could have done in the excessively severe weather ; as 
it was found that respiration became difficult when it was 
so very cold. 

Access was now obtained to the wreck, by cutting a 
regular passage to the main hatch through the ice. The 
schooner stood nearly upright, sustained by fragments of 
the floe ; and there were extensive caverns all around her 
produced by the random manner in which the cakes had 
come up out of their proper element like so many living 
things. Among these caverns one might have wandered 
for miles without once coming out into the open air, though 
they were cold and cheerless, and had little to attract the 
adventurer after the novelty was abated. In rising from 
the water, the schooner had been roughly treated ; but 
once sustained by the ice, her transit had been easy and 
tolerably safe. Several large cakes lay on or over her, 
sustained more by other cakes that rested on the rocks 
than by the timbers of the vessel herself. These cakes 
formed a sort of roof, and as they did not drip, they served 
to make a shelter against the wind ; for, at the point where 
the wreck lay, the southwest gales came howling round 
the base of the mountain, piercing the marrow itself in the 
bones. At the hut it was very different. There the 
heights made a lee that extended all over the cape, and for 
some distance to the westward ; while the whole power 


THE SEA LIONS. 


349 


the sun possessed in that high latitude was cast, very ob- 
liquely it is true, but clearly, and without any other draw- 
back than its position in the ecliptic, fairly on the terrace, 
the hut above, and the rocks around it. On the natural 
terrace, indeed, it was still pleasant to walk and work, and 
even to sit for a few hours in the middle of the day ; for 
winter was not yet come in earnest in that frozen world. 

One of Roswell’s first objects was to transport most of 
the eatables from the wreck ; for he foresaw the need there 
would be for everything of the sort. Neither vessel had 
laid in a stock of provisions for a longer period than about 
twelve months, of which nearly half were now gone. This 
allowance applied to salted meats and bread, which are 
usually regarded as . the base of a ship’s stores. There 
were several barrels of flour, a few potatoes, a large quan- 
tity of onions, a few barrels of corn-meal, or “ injin,” as it 
is usually termed in American parlance, an entire barrel of 
pickled cucumbers, another about half full of cabbage pre- 
served in the same way, and an entire barrel of molasses. 
In addition, there was a cask of whiskey, a little wine and 
brandy to be used medicinally, sugar, brown, whitey-brown 
and browny-white, and a pretty fair allowance of tea and 
coffee ; the former being a Hyson-skin, and the latter San 
Domingo of no very high quality. Most of these articles 
were transported from the wreck to the house, in the course 
of the few days that succeeded, though Daggett insisted on 
a certain portion of the supplies being left in his stranded 
craft. Not until this was done would Roswell listen to 
any proposal of Daggett’s to transfer the skins. Twice 
during these few days, indeed, did the Vineyard master 
come to a pause in his proceedings, as the weather grew 
milder, and gleams of a hope of being able yet to get away 
that season crossed his mind. On the last of these occa- 
sions of misgiving, Roswell was compelled to lead his 
brother master up on the plain of the island, to an eleva- 
tion of some three hundred feet above the level of the 
ocean, and more than half that distance higher than the 
house, and point out to him a panorama of field-ice that the 
eye could not command. Until that vast plain opened, or 


350 


THE SEA LIONS. 


became riven by the joint action of the agitated ocean and 
the warmth of a sun from which the rays did not glance 
away from the frozen surface, like light obliquely received, 
and as obliquely reflected from a mirror, it was useless to 
think of releasing even the uninjured vessel ; much less 
that which lay riven and crushed on the rocks. 

“ Were every cake of this ice melted into water, Dag- 
gett,” Roswell continued, “ it would not float off your 
schooner. The best supplied ship-yard in America could 
hardly furnish the materials for ways to launch her ; and I 
never knew of a vessel’s being dropped into the water some 
twenty feet nearly perpendicular.” 

“ I don’t know that,” answered Daggett, stoutly. “ See 
what they ’re doing nowadays, and think nothing of it. 
I have seen a whole row of brick houses turned round 
by the use of jack-screws ; and one building actually taken 
down a hill much higher than the distance you name. 
Commodore Rodgers has just hauled a heavy frigate out 
of the water, and means to put her back again, when 
he has done with her. What has been done once can 
be done twice. I do not like giving up till I ’m forced 
to it.” 

“ That is plain enough, Captain Daggett,” returned Ros- 
well, smiling. “ That you are game, no one can deny ; 
but it will all come to nothing. Neither Commodore Rodg- 
ers nor Commodore anybody else could put your craft into 
the water again without something to do it with.” 

“ You think it would be asking too much to take your 
schooner, and go across to the main next season a’ter 
timber to make ways ?” put in Daggett, inquiringly. “ She 
stands up like a church, and nothing would be easier than 
lo lay down ways under her bottom.” 

“ Or more difficult than to make them of any use, after 
you had put them there. No, no, my good" sir, you must 
think no more of this ; though it may be possible to make 
a cover for the cargo, and return and recover it all, by 
freighting a craft from Rio, on our way north.” 

Daggett gave a quick, inquisitive glance at his compan- 
ion, and Roswell’s color mounted to his cheeks ; for, whilt 


THE SEA LIONS. 


351 


he really ;h ought the plan just mentioned quite feasible, 
he was conscious of foreseeing that it might be made the 
means of throwing off his troublesome companion, as he 
himself drew near to the West Indies and their keys. 

This terminated the discussion for the time. Both of 
the masters busied themselves in carrying on the duty 
which had now fallen into a regular train. As much of the 
interest of what is to be related will depend on what was 
done in these few days, it may be well to be a little more 
explicit in stating the particulars. 

The reader will understand that the house, of which so 
much had already been made by our mariners, was noth- 
ing but a shell. It had a close roof, one that effectually 
turned water, and its siding, though rough, was tight and 
rather thicker than is usual ; being made of common inch 
boards, roughly planed, and orginally painted red. There 
were four very tolerable windows, and a decent substantial 
floor of planed plank. All this had been well put together, 
rather more attention than is often bestowed on such struct- 
ures having been paid by the carpenter to the cracks and 
joints on account of the known sharpness of the climate, 
even in the warm months. Still, all this made a mere 
shell. The marrow-freezing winds which would soon come 
— had indeed come — might be arrested by such a cover- 
ing, it is true ; but the little needle-like particles of the 
frost would penetrate such a shelter, as their counterparts 
of steel pierce cloth. It was a matter of life and death, 
therefore, to devise means to exclude the cold, in order 
that the vital heat might be kept in circulation during the 
tremendous season that was known to be approaching. 

Stimson had much to say on the subject of the arrange- 
ments taken. He was the oldest man in the two crews, 
and the most experienced sealer. It happened, that he had 
once passed a winter at Orange Harbor, in the immediate 
vicinity of Cape Horn. It is true, that is an inhabited 
country, if the poor degraded creatures who dwell there 
can be termed inhabitants ; and has its trees and vegeta- 
tion, such as they are. The difference between Orange 
Harbor and Sealer’s Land, in this respect, must be some- 


352 


THE SEA LIONS. 


thing like that which all the traveling world knows to 
exist between a winter’s residence at the Hospital of the 
Great St. Bernard, and a winter’s residence at one of the 
villages a few leagues lower down the mountain. At 
Sealer’s Land, if there was literally no vegetation, there 
was so little as scarcely to deserve the name. Of fuel 
there was none, with the exception of that which had been 
brought there. Nevertheless, the experience of a winter 
passed at such a place as Orange Harbor, must count for a 
great deal. Cape Horn is in nearly 56°, and Sealer’s 
Land — we may as well admit this much — is, by no 
means, 10° to the southward of that. There must be a 
certain general resemblance in the climates of the two 
places ; and he who had gone through a winter at one of 
them, must have had a very tolerable foretaste of what was 
to be suffered at the other. This particular experience, 
therefore, added to his general knowledge, as well as to 
his character, contributed largely to Stephen’s influence in 
the consultations that took place between the two masters, 
at which he was usually present. 

“ It ’s useless to be playing off, in an affair like this, 
Captain Gar’ner,” said Stephen, on one occasion. “ Away 
from this spot all the navies of the ’arth could not now 
carry us, until God’s sun comes back in his course, to drive 
the winter away afore it. I have my misgivin’s, gentle- 
men, touching this great floe that has got jammed in among 
these islands, whether it will ever move ag’in ; for I don’t 
think its coming in here is a common matter.” 

“ In which case, what would become Of us, Stephen ? ” 

“ Why, sir, we should be at God’s marcy, then, jist as 
we be now; or would be, was we on the east eend itself. 
I won’t say that two resolute and strong arms might not 
cut a way through for one little craft like ourn, if they had 
summer fully afore ’em, and know’d they was a-workin’ 
towards a fri’nd instead of towards an inimy. There ’s a 
great deal in the last ; every man is encouraged when he 
thinks he ’s nearer to the eend of his journey a’ter a hard 
day’s work, than he was when he set out in the mornin’. 
But to undertake such an expedition at this season, would 


THE SEA LIONS. 


353 


be sartain destruction. No, sir ; all we can do, now, is to 
lay up for the winter, and that with great care and pru- 
dence. We must turn ourselves into so many ants, and 
show their forethought and care.” 

“ What would you recommend as our first step, Stim- 
son ? ” asked Daggett, who had been an attentive listener. 

“I would advise, sir, to begin hardening the men as 
soon as I could. We have too much fire in the stove, both 
for our stock of wood and for the good of the people. 
Make the men sleep under fewer clothes, and don’t let any 
on ’em hang about the galley fire, as some on ’em love to 
do, even now, most desperately. Them ere men will be 
good for nothin’ ten weeks hence unless they ere taken off 
the fires, as a body would take off a pot or a kettle and 
are set out to harden.” 

“ This is a process that may be easier advised than per- 
formed, perhaps,” Roswell quietly observed. 

“ Don’t you believe that, Captain Gar’ner. I ’ve known 
the most shiverin’, smoke-dried hands in a large crew, 
hardened and brought to an edge a’ter a little trouble, as 
a body would temper an axe with steel. The first thing 
to be done is to make ’em scrub one another every morn 
in’, in cold water. This gives a life to the skin that acts 
much the same as a suit of clothes. Yes, gentlemen ; put 
a fellow in a tub for a minute or two of a mornin’, and 
you may do almost anything you please with him all day 
a’terwards. One pail of water is as good as a pee-jacket. 
And above all things, keep the stoves clear. The cooks 
should be told not to drive their fires so hard ; and we can 
do without the stove in the sleeping-room a great deal better 
now than most on us think. It will help to save much 
wood, if we begin at once to calk and thicken our siding, 
and make the house warmer. Was the hut in a good 
state, we might do without any other fire than that in the 
camboose for two months yet.” 

Such was the general character of Stephen’s counsel, 
and very good advice it was. Not only did Roswell adopt 
the scrubbing process, which enabled him to throw aside a 
great many clothes in the course of a week, but he kept 
23 


354 


THE SEA LIONS. 


aloof from the fires, to harden, as Stimson had called it. 
That which was thus enforced by example was additionally 
enjoined by precept. Several large, hulking, idle fellows, 
who greatly loved the fire, were driven away from it by 
shame ; and the heat was allowed to diffuse itself more 
equally through the building. 

Any one who has ever had occasion to be a witness of 
the effect of the water-cure process in enabling even deli- 
cate women to resist cold and damp, may form some no- 
tion of the great improvement that was made among our 
sealers, by adopting and rigidly adhering to Stimson’s cold 
water and no-fire system. Those who had shivered at the 
very thoughts of ice-water, soon dabbled in it like young 
ducks ; and there was scarcely ail hour in the day when 
the half-hogshead, that was used as a bath, had not its ten- 
ant. This tub was placed on the ice of the cove, with a 
tent over it ; and a well was made through which the water 
was drawn. Of course, the axe was in great request, a 
new hole being required each morning, and sometimes two 
or three times in the course of the day. The effect of 
these ablutions was very soon apparent. The men began to 
throw aside their pee-jackets, and worked in their ordinary 
clothing, which was warm and suited to a high latitude, 
with a spirit and vigor at which they were themselves sur- 
prised. The fire in the camboose sufficed as yet ; and at 
evening the pee-jacket, with the shelter of the building, 
the crowded rooms, and the warm meals, for a long time 
enabled them to get on without consuming anything in the 
largest stove. Stimson’s plans for the protection of the 
hut, moreover, soon began to tell. The skins, sails, and 
much of the rigging, were brought over from the wreck ; 
by means of the carts, so long as there was no snow, and 
by means of sledges when the snow fell aud rendered 
wheeling difficult. Luckily, the position of the road along 
the rocks caused the upper snow to melt a little at noon- 
day, while it froze again, firmer and firmer each night. 
The crust soon bore, and it was found that the sledges 
furnished even better means of transportation than the 
wheels. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


355 


There was a little controversy about the use of the 
skins, Daggett continuing to regard them as cargo. Ne- 
cessity and numbers prevailed in the end, and the whole 
building was lined with them, four or five deep, by plac- 
ing them inside of beckets made of the smaller rigging. 
By stuffing these skins compactly, within ropes so placed 
as to keep all snug, a very material defence against the 
entrance of cold was interposed. But this was not all. 
Inside of the skins Stimson got up hangings of canvas, 
using the sails of the wreck for that purpose. It was not 
necessary to cut these sails — Daggett would not have suf- 
fered it — but they were suspended, and crammed into 
openings, and otherwise so arranged as completely to con- 
ceal and shelter every side, as well as the ceilings of both 
rooms. Portions were fitted with such address as to fall 
before the windows, to which they formed very warm if 
not very ornamental curtains. Stephen, however, induced 
Roswell to order outside shutters to be made and hung ; 
maintaining that one such shutter would soon count as a 
dozen cords of wood. 

Much of the wood, too, was brought over from the 
wreck ; and that which had been carelessly abandoned on 
the rocks was all collected and piled carefully and conven- 
iently near the outer door of the hut ; which door by the 
way, looked inward, or towards the rocks, in the rear of 
the building, where it opened on a sort of yard, that Ros- 
well hoped to be able to keep clear of ice and snow 
throughout the winter. He might as well have expected 
to melt the glaciers of Grindewald by lighting a fire on 
,he meadows at their base ! 

Stephen had another project to protect the house, and to 
give facilities for moving outside, when the winter should 
be at the hardest. In his experience at Orange Harbor, 
he had found that great inconvenience was sustained in 
consequence of the snow’s melting around the building he 
inhabited, which came from the warmth of the fire within. 
To avoid this, a very serious evil, he had spare sails of 
heavy canvas laid across the roof of the warehouse, a 
building of no great height, and secured them to the rocks 


356 


THE SEA LK'IVS 


below by means of anchors, ktdgos, ml *jrk to other de- 
vices ; in some instances, by lashings to project o is in the 
cliffs. Spare spars, leaning from the roof, suppfr ted this 
tent-like covering, and props beneath sustained thj spars. 
This arrangement was made on only two sides of tne build- 
ing, one end, and the side which looked to the vorth ; 
materials failing before the whole place was surrounded. 
The necessity for admitting light, too, admonished the seal- 
ers of the inexpediency of thus shrouding all theii win- 
dows. The bottom of this tent was only ten feet frafiu the 
side of the house, which gave it greater security than if it 
had been more horizontal, while it made a species (A ve- 
randa in which exercise could be taken with greater free- 
dom than in the rooms. Everything was done to strengthen 
the building in all its parts that the ingenuity of seamen 
could suggest, and particularly to prevent the tent veranda 
from caving in. 

Stephen intimated that their situation* possessed one 
great advantage, as well as disadvantage. In consequence 
of standing on a shelf with a lower terrace so close as to 
be within the cast of a shovel, the snow might be thrown 
below, and the hut relieved. The melted snow, too, would 
be apt to take the same direction, under the law that gov- 
erns the course of all fluids. The disadvantage was in 
the barrier of rock behind the hut, which while it served 
admirably to break the piercing south winds, would very 
naturally tend to make high snow-banks in drifting storma, 


THE SEA LIONS. 


857 


CHAPTER XXIV. 

My foot on the iceberg has lighted, 

When hoarse the wild winds veer about; 

My eye when the bark is benighted, 

Sees the lamp of the light-house go out. 

I ’m the sea-bird, sea-bird, sea-bird, 

Lone looker on despair; 

The sea-bird, sea-bird, sea-bird, 

The only witness there. 

Brainard. 

Two months passed rapidly away in the excitement and 
novelty of the situation and pursuits of the men. In that 
time, all was done that the season would allow ; the house 
being considered as complete, and far from uncomfortable. 
The days had rapidly lessened in length, and the nights 
increased proportionally, until the sun was visible only for 
a few hours at a time, and then merely passing low along 
the northern horizon. The cold increased in proportion, 
though the weather varied almost as much in that high 
latitude as it does in our own. It had ceased to thaw 
much, however ; and the mean of the thermometer was 
not many degrees above zero. Notwithstanding this low 
range of the mercury, the men found that they were fast 
getting acclimated, and that they could endure a much 
greater intensity of cold than they had previously sup- 
posed possible. As yet, there had been nothing to surprise 
natives of New York and New England, there rarely oc- 
curring a winter in which weather quite as cold as any 
they had yet experienced in the antarctic sea, does not set 
in, and last for some little time. Even while writing this very 
chapter of our legend, here in the mountains of Otsego, 
one of these Siberian visits has been paid to our valley. 
For the last three days the thermometer has ranged at 
sunrise, between 17° and 22° below zero ; though there is 


858 


THE SEA LIONS. 


every appearance of a thaw, and we may have the mer- 
cury up to 40° above, in the course of the next twenty- 
four hours. Men accustomed to such transitions, and such 
extreme cold, are not easily laid up or intimidated. 

A great deal of snow fell about this particular portion 
of the year ; more, indeed, than at a later period. This 
snow produced the greatest inconvenience ; for it soon be- 
came so deep as to form high banks around the house, and 
to fill all the customary haunts of the men. Still, there 
were places that were in a great measure exempt from this 
white mantle. The terrace immediately below the hut, 
which has so often been mentioned, was one of these bare 
spots. It was so placed as to be swept by both the east 
and the west winds, which generally cleared it of every- 
thing like snow, as fast as it fell ; and this more effectually 
than could be done by a thousand brooms. The level of rock 
usually traveled in going to or from the wreck, was another 
of these clear places. It was a sort of shelf, too narrow to 
admit of the snow’s banking, and too much raked by the 
winds that commonly accompanied snow, to suffer the last 
to lodge to any great depth. Snow there was, with a hard 
crust, as has already been mentioned ; but it was not snow 
ten or fifteen feet deep, as occurred in many other places. 
There were several points, however, where banks had 
formed, even on this ledge, through which the men were 
compelled to cut their way by the use of shovels : an oc- 
cupation that gave them exercise, and contributed to keep 
them in health, if it was of no other service. It was 
found that the human frame could not endure one half the 
toil, in that low state of the mercury, that it could bear in 
one a few degrees higher. 

Daggett had not, by any means, abandoned his craft, as 
much as he had permitted her to be dismantled. Every 
day or two he had some new expedient for getting the 
schooner off in the spring ; though all who heard them 
were perfectly convinced of their impracticableness. This 
feeling induced him to cause his own men to keep opeD 
the communication ; and scarce a day passed in which he 
did not visit the poor unfortunate craft. Nor was the place 


THE SEA LIONS. 


359 


without an interest of a very peculiar sort. It has been 
said that the fragments of ice, some of which were more 
than a hundred feet in diameter, and all of which were 
eight or ten feet in thickness, had been left on their edges, 
inclining in a way to form caverns that extended a great 
distance. Now it so happened that just around the wreck 
the cakes were so distributed as to intercept the first snows 
which filled the outer passages, got to be hardened, and 
covered anew by fresh storms, thus interposed an effectual 
barrier to the admission of any more of the frozan element 
within the ice. The effect was to form a vast range of 
natural galleries amid the cakes, that were quite clear of 
any snow but that which had adhered to their surfaces, and 
which offered little or no impediment to motion — nay, 
which rather aided it, by rendering the walking less slip- 
pery. As the deck of the schooner had been cleared, leav- 
ing an easy access to all its entrances, cabin, hold, and 
forecastle, this put the Vineyard Lion under cover, while 
it admitted of all her accommodations being used. A por- 
tion of her wood had been left in her, it will be remem- 
bered, as well as her camboose. The last was got into the 
cabin, and Daggett, attended by two or three of his hands, 
would pass a good deal of his time there. One reason 
given for this distribution of the forces, was the greater 
room it allowed those who remained at the hut for motion. 
The deck of this vessel being quite clear, it offered a very 
favorable spot for exercise ; better, in fact, than the ter- 
race beneath the hut, being quite sheltered from the winds, 
and much warmer than it had been originally, or ever since 
the heavy fall of snows commenced. Daggett paced his 
quarter-deck hour after hour, almost deluding himself with 
the expectation of sailing for home as soon as the return of 
summer would permit him to depart. 

Around the hut the snow early made vast embankments. 
Every one accustomed to the action, of this particular con- 
dition of one of the great elements, will understand that a 
bend in the rocks outward, or a curve inward, must neces- 
sarily affect the manner in which these banks were formed. 
The wind did r.ot, by any means, blow from any one point 


360 


THE SEA LIONS. 


of the compass ; though the southwestern cliffs might be 
almost termed the weather side of the island, so much more 
frequently did the gales come from that quarter than from 
any other. The cape where the cove lay, and where the 
house had been set up, being at the northeastern point, 
and much protected by the high table-land in its rear, it 
occupied the warmest situation in the whole region. The 
winds that swept most of the north shore, but which, owing 
to a curvature in its formation, did not often blow home to 
the hut, even when they whistled along the terrace only a 
hundred feet beneath and more salient, were ordinarily 
from the southwest outside ; though they got a more west- 
terly inclination by following the land under the cliffs. 

A bank of snow may be either a cause of destruction or 
a source of comfort. Of course, a certain degree of cold 
must exist wherever snow is to be found ; but, unless in 
absolute contact with the human body, it does not usually 
affect the system beyond a certain point. On the other 
hand, it often breaks the wind, and it has been known to 
form a covering to flocks, houses, etc., that has contributed 
essentially to their warmth. We incline to the opinion 
that if one slept in a cavern formed in the snow, provided 
he could keep himself dry, and did not come in absolute 
contact with the element, he would not find his quarters 
very unconffortable, so long as he had sufficient clothing to 
confine the animal warmth near his person. Now our 
sealers enjoyed some such advantage as this ; though not 
literally in the same degree. Their house was not covered 
with snow, though a vast bank was already formed quite 
near it, and a good deal had begun to pile against the tent. 
Singular as it may seem, on the east end of the building, 
and on the south front, which looked in towards the cliff 
next the cove, there was scarcely any snow at all. This 
was in part owing to the constant use of the shovel and 
broom, but more so to the currents of air, which usually car- 
ried everything of so light a nature as a flake to more quiet 
spots, before it was suffered to settle on the ground. 

Roswell early found, what his experience as an Amer- 
ican might have taught him, that the melting of the snow 


THE SEA LIONS. 


361 


in consequence Ou be warmth of the fires, caused much 
more inconvenience than the snow itself. The latter, when 
dry, was easily got along with ; but, when melted in the 
day, and converted h\to icicles at night, it became a most 
unpleasant and not altogether a safe neighbor ; inasmuch 
as there was really danger f.'om the sort of damp atmos- 
phere it produced. 

The greatest ground of Roswell Gardiner’s apprehen- 
sions, however, was for the supply of fuel. Much of thr* 
brought from home had been fairly used in the cambooso, 
and in the stove originally set up in the hut. Large as 
that stock had been, a very sensible inroad had been made 
upon it ; and, according to a calculation he had made, the 
wood regularly laid in would not hold out much more than 
half the time that it would be indispensable to remain on 
the island. This was a grave circumstance, and one that 
demanded very serious consideration. Without fuel it woula 
be impossible to survive ; no hardening process being suffi- 
cient to fortify the human frame to a degree that would re* 
sist the influence of an antarctic winter. 

From the moment it was probable the party would be 
obliged to pass the winter at Sealer’s Land, therefore, Ros- 
well had kept a vigilant eye on the wood. Stinrson had 
more than once, spoken to him on the subject, and with 
g*reat prudence. 

“ Warmth must be kept among us,” said the eld boat 
steerer, “ or there will be no hope for the stoutest man in 
either crew. We ’ve a pretty good stock of coffee, and 
that is better, any day, than all the rum and whiskey thal 
was ever distilled. Good hot coffee of a morning will put 
life into us the coldest day that ever come out of eithei 
pole ; and they do say the south is colder than the north, 
though I never could understand why it should be so.” 

“ You surely understand the reason why it grows warmer 
as we approach the equator, and colder as we go from it, 
whether we go north or south ? ” 

Stimson assented ; though had the truth been said, he 
would have been obliged to confess that he knew no more 
than the facts. 


362 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ All sailors know sich things, Captain Gar’ner ; though 
they know it with very different degrees of exper’ence. But 
few get as far south as I have been, to pass a winter. A 
good pot of hot coffee of a morning will go as far as a sec- 
ond pee-jacket, if a man has to go out into the open air 
when the weather is at the hardest.” 

“ Luckily, our small stores are quite abundant, and we 
are better off for coffee and sugar than for anything else. 
I laid in of both liberally when we were at Rio.” 

“ Yes, Rio is a good place for the articles. But coffee 
must be hot to do a fellow much good in one of these high- 
latitude winters ; and to be hot there must be fuel to heat 
it.” 

“ I am afraid the wood will not hold out much more 
than half the time we shall be here. Fortunately, we had 
a large supply ; but the other schooner was by no means 
as well furnished with fuel as she ought to have been for 
such a voyage.” 

“ Well, sir, I suppose you know what must be done next 
in such a case. Without warm, food, men can no more live 
through one of these winters, than they can live without 
food at all. If the Vineyard craft has no proper fuel aboard 
her, we must make fuel of her.” 

Roswell regarded Stephen with fixed attention for some 
time. The idea was presented to his mind for the second 
time, and he greatly liked it. 

“ That might do,” he said ; “ though it will not be an easy 
matter to make Captain Daggett consent to such a thing.” 

“ Let him go two or three mornings without his warm 
meal and hot coffee,” answered Stimson, shaking his head, 
“ and he will be glad enough to come into the scheme. A 
man soon gets willing to set fire to anything that will burn 
in such a climate. A notion has been floating about in my' 
mind, Captain Gar’ner, that I ’ve several times thought I 
would mention to you. D’ ye think, sir, any benefit could 
be made of that volcano over the bay, should the worst 
get to the worst with us ? ” 

“ I have thought of the same thing, Stephen ; though I 
fear in vain. I suppose no useful heat can be given out 


THE SEA LIONS. 


363 


there, until one gets too near the bad air to breathe it. 
What you say about breaking up the other schooner, how- 
ever, is worthy of consideration ; and I will speak to Cap- 
tain Daggett about it. 

Roswell was as good as his word ; and the Vineyard 
mariner met the proposal as one repels an injury. Never 
were our two masters so near a serious misunderstanding, 
as when Roswell suggested to Daggett the expediency of 
breaking up the wreck, now that the weather was endura- 
ble, and the men could work with reasonable comfort and 
tolerable advantage. 

“ The man who puts an axe or a saw into that unfortu- 
nate craft,” said Daggett, firmly, “ I shall regard as an 
enemy. It is a hard enough bed that she lies on, without 
having her ribs and sides torn to pieces by hands.” 

This was the strange spirit in which Daggett continued 
to look at the condition of the wreck ! It was true that 
the ice prevented his actually seeing the impossibility of 
his ever getting his schooner into the water again ; but no 
man at all acquainted with mechanics, and who knew the 
paucity of means that existed on the island, could for a 
moment entertain the idle expectation that seemed to have 
got into the Vineyard master’s mind, unless subject to a 
species of one-idea infatuation. This infatuation, however, 
existed not only in Daggett’s mind, but in some degree in 
those of his men. It is said that “ in a multitude of coun- 
selors there is wisdom ; ” and the axiom comes from an 
authority too venerable to be disputed. But it might, 
almost with equal justice, be said, that “ in a multitude of 
counselors there is folly ; ” for men are quite as apt to sus- 
tain each other in the wrong as in the right. The individ- 
ual who would hesitate about advancing his fallacies and 
mistakes with a single voice, does not scruple to proclaim 
them on the hill-tops, when he finds other tongues to re- 
peat his errors. Divine wisdom, foreseeing this conse- 
quence of human weakness, has provided a church-catholic, 
and proceeding directly from its Great Head on earth, as 
the repository of those principles, facts, and laws, that it 
has deemed essential to the furtherance of its own scheme 


364 


THE SEA LIONS. 


of moral government on earth ; and yet we see audacious 
imitators starting up on every side, presuming in their 
ignorance, longing in their ambition, and envious in these 
longings, who do not scruple to shout out upon the house- 
tops crudities over which knowledge wonders as it smiles, 
and humility weeps as it wonders. Such is man, when 
sustained by his fellows, in every interest in life ; from re- 
ligion, the highest of all, down to the most insignificant of 
his temporal concerns. 

In this spirit did Daggett and his crew now feel and act. 
Roswell had early seen, with regret, that something like a 
feeling of party was getting up among the Vineyarders, 
who had all along regarded the better fortune of their 
neighbors with an ill-concealed jealousy. Ever since the 
shipwreck, however, this rivalry had taken a new and even 
less pleasant aspect.' It was slightly hostile, and remarks 
had been occasionally made that sounded equivocally ; as 
if the Vineyarders had an intention of separating from the 
other crew, and of living by themselves. It is probable, 
however, that all this was the fruit of disappointment ; and 
that, at the bottom, nothing very serious was in contempla- 
tion. Daggett had permitted his people to aid in transport- 
ing most of the stores to the house ; though a considerable 
supply had been left in the wreck. This last arrangement 
was made seemingly without any hostile design, but rather 
in furtherance of a plan to pass as much time as circum- 
stances would allow, on board the stranded vessel. There 
was, in truth, a certain convenience in this scheme, that 
commended it to the good sense of all. So long as any 
portion of the Vineyarders could be made comfortable in 
the wreck, it was best they should remain there ; for it 
saved the labor of transporting all the provisions, and 
made more room to circulate in and about the house. The 
necessity of putting so many casks, barrels, and boxes within 
doors, had * materially circumscribed the limits ; and space 
was a great desideratum for several reasons, health in par- 
ticular. 

Roswell was glad, therefore, when any of the Vineyard- 
ers expressed a wish to go the wreck, and to pass a few 


THE SEA LIONS. 


365 


days there. With a view to encourage this disposition, as 
well as to ascertain how those fared who chose that abode, 
he paid Daggett a visit, and passed a night or two himself 
in the cabin of the craft. This experiment told him that 
it was very possible to exist there when the thermometer 
stood at zero ; but how it would do when ranging a great 
deal lower, he had his doubts. The cabin was small, and 
a very moderate fire in the camboose served to keep it 
reasonably warm ; though Daggett, at all times a reasona- 
ble and reasoning man, when the “ root of all evil ” did not 
sorely beset him, came fully into his own views as to the 
necessity of husbanding the fuel, and of hardening the men . 
None of that close stewing over stoves, which is so common 
in America, and which causes one half of the winter dis- 
eases of the climate, was tolerated in either gang. Daggett 
saw the prudence- of Roswell’s, or rather of Stimson’s sys- 
tem, and fell into it freely, and with hearty good-will. It 
was during Gardiner’s visit, to the wreck that our two mas- 
ters talked over their plans for the winter, while taking 
their exercise on the schooner’s deck, each well muffled up, 
to prevent the frost from taking hold of the more exposed 
parts. Every one had a seal-skin cap, made in a way to 
protect the ears and most of the face ; and our two masters 
were thus provided, in common with their men. 

“ I suppose that we are to consider this as pleasant win- 
ter weather,” Roswell remarked, “ the thermometer being 
down only at zero. Stimson tells me that even at Orange 
Harbor, the season he was there, they paid out mercury 
until it all got into the ball. A month or two hence, we 
may look out for the season of frosts, as the Injins call it. 
You will hardly think of staying out here, when the really 
hard weather sets in.” 

“ I do not believe we shall feel the cold much more than 
we do now. This daily washing is a capital stove ; for I 
find all hands say that, when it is once over, they feel like 
new men. As for me, I shall stick by my craft while 
there is a timber left in her to float ! ” 

Roswell thought how absurd it was to cling thus to a 
Useless mass of wood, and iron, and copper ; but he said 
nothing on that subject. 


866 


THE SEA LIONS. 


u I am now sorry that we took over to the house so 
many of our supplies, ! ” Daggett continued, after a short 
pause. “ I am afraid that many of them will have to be 
brought back again.” 

u That would hardly quit cost, Daggett ; it would be 
better to come over and pass the heel of the winter with 
tn ; when the supplies get to be short here. As we eat, we 
make room in the hut, you know ; and you will be so much 
the more comfortable. An empty pork-barrel was broken 
up for the camboose yesterday morning.” 

“We shall see — we shall see, Gar’ner. My men have 
got a notion that your people intend to break up this 
schooner for fuel, should they not keep an anchor-watch 
aboard her.” 

“ Anchor-watch ! ” repeated Roswell, smiling. “ It is 
well named — if there ever was an anchor- watch, you keep 
it here ; for no ground-tackle will ever hold like this.” 

“ We still think the schooner may be got off,” Daggett 
said, regarding his companion inquiringly. 

“ While the Vineyard man had a certain distrust of his 
brother master, he had also a high respect for his fair-deal- 
ing propensities, and a strong disposition to put confidence 
in his good faith. The look that he now gave was, if pos- 
sible, to read the real opinion of the other, in a counte- 
nance that seldom deceived. 

“ I shall be grateful to God, Captain Daggett,” returned 
Roswell, after a short pause, “ if we get through the long 
winter of this latitude, without burning too much of both 
craft, than will be for our good. Surely it were better to 
begin on that which is in the least serviceable condition ? ” 

“ I have thought this matter over, Gar’ner, with all my 
mind — have dreamt of it — slept on it — had it before me 
at all hours, and in all weathers ; and, look at it as I will, 
it is full of difficulties. Will you agree to take in a half 
cargo of my skins and iles next season, and make in all 
respects a joint v’y’ge of it, from home, home ag’in, if we ’ll 
consent to let this craft be burned ? ” 

“ It exceeds my power to make any such bargain. I 
have an owner who looks sharply after his property, and 


THE SEA LIONS. 


367 


my cre\* are upon lays, like the people of all sealers. You 
ask too much ; and you forget that, should I assume the 
same power over my own craft, as you still claim in this 
wreck, you might never find the means of getting away 
from the group at all. We are not obliged to receive you 
on board our schooner.” 

“ I know you think, Gar’ner, that it will be impossible 
for us ever to get our craft off; but you overlook one 
thing that we may do — what is there to prevent our 
breaking her up, and of using the materials to make a 
smaller vessel ; one of sixty tons say — in which we might 
get home, besides taking most of our skins ? ” 

“ I will not say that will be impossible ; but I do say it 
will be very difficult. It would be wiser for you, in my 
judgment, to leave your cargo in the house, under the keep- 
ing of a few hands if you see fit, and go off with me. I 
will land you at Rio, where you can almost always find 
some small American craft to come south in, and pick up 
your leavings. If you choose that the men left behind 
should amuse themselves in your absence, by building a 
small craft, I am certain they will meet with no. opposition 
from me. There is but one place where a vessel can be 
launched, and that is the spot in the cove where we 
beached your schooner. There it might possibly be done, 
though I think not without a great deal of trouble, and 
possibly not without more means than are to be picked up 
along shore in this group. But there is a very important 
fact that you overlook, Daggett, which it may be as well 
to mention here, as to delay it. Your craft, or mine , must 
be used as fuel this winter, or we shall freeze to death to 
a man. I have made the calculations closely ; and, certain 
as our existence, there is no alternative between such a 
death and the use of the fuel I have mentioned.” 

“Not a timber of mine shall be touched. I do not be- 
lieve one half of these stories about the antarctic winter, 
which cannot be much worse than what a body meets with 
up in the Bay of Fundy.” 

“ A winter in the Bay of Fundy, without fuel, must be 
bad enough ; but it is a mere circumstance to one hero. I 


368 


THE SEA LIONS. 


should think that a man who has tasted an antarctic sum « 
mer and autumn , must get a pretty lively notion of what 
is to come after them.” 

“ The men can keep in their berths much of the time, 
and save wood. There are many other ways of getting 
through a winter than burning a vessel. I shall never 
consent to a stick of this good craft’s going into the galley- 
fire as long as I can see my way clear to prevent it. I 
would burn cargo before I would burn my craft.” 

Roswell wondered at this pertinacity ; but he trusted to 
the pressure of the coming season, and changed # the sub- 
ject. Certainly the thought of breaking up his own craft 
did not cross his mind ; though he could see no sufficient 
objection to the other side of the proposition. As discus- 
sion was useless, however, he continued to converse with 
Daggett on various practical subjects, on which his com- 
panion was rational and disposed to learn. 

It had been ascertained by experiment that the water, at 
a considerable depth, was essentially warmer beneath the 
ice, than at its surface. A plan had been devised by which 
the lower currents of the water could be pumped up for 
the purposes of the bath ; thus rendering the process far 
more tolerable than it had previously been. Bathing iu 
extremely cold weather, however, is not as formidable a 
thing as is generally supposed, tire air being at a lower 
temperature than the water. As the greatest importance 
was attached to these daily ablutions, the subject was gone 
over between the two masters in all its bearings. There 
were no conveniences for the operation at the wreck ; and 
this was one reason why Roswell suggested that a residence 
there ought to be abandoned. Daggett dissented, and in- 
vited his companion to take a walk in his caverns. 

A promenade in a succession of caves formed of ice, 
with the thermometer at zero, would naturally strike one 
as a somewhat chilling amusement. Gardiner did not find 
it so. He was quite protected from the wind, which gives 
so much pungency to bitter cold, rendering it insupporta- 
ble. Completely protected from this, and warmed by the 
exertion of clambering among the cakes, Roswell’s blood 


THE SEA LIONS. 


869 


was soon in a healthful glow ; and, to own the truth, when 
he left the wreck, it was with a much better opinion of it, 
as a place of residence, than when he had arrived to pay 
his visit. 

As there was now nothing for the men to do in the way 
of preparation, modes of amusement were devised that 
might unite activity^of body with that of the mind. The 
snows ceased to fall as the season advanced; and there 
were but few places on which heavy burdens might not 
have been transported over their crusts. It was, indeed, 
easier moving about on the surface of the frozen snow, 
than it had been on the naked rocks ; the latter offering 
obstacles that no longer showed themselves. Sliding down 
the declivities, and even skating, were practiced ; few north- 
ern Americans being ignorant of the latter art. Various 
other sources of amusement were resorted to ; but it was 
found, generally, that very little exercise in the open air 
exhausted the frame, and that a great difficulty of breathing 
occurred. Still, it was thought necessary to health that 
the men should remain as much as possible out of the 
crowded house ; and various projects were adopted to keep 
up the vital warmth while exposed. Ere the month of 
July had passed, which corresponds to our January, it had 
been found expedient to make dresses of skins ; for which 
fortunately the materials abounded. 

As the season advanced, the idea of preserving more 
than the lives of his men was gradually abandoned by Gar- 
diner ; though Daggett still clung to his wreck, and actually 
had wood transported back to it, that he might stay as much 
as possible near his property. There was no longer any 
thawing, though there were very material gradations in the 
intensity of the frosts. Occasionally, it was quite possible 
to remain in the open air an hour or two at a time ; then, 
again, there were days in which it exceeded the powers of 
human endurance to remain more thau a few minutes re- 
moved to any distance from heat artificially procured. On 
the whole, however, it was found that the comparatively 
moderate weather predominated; and it was rare indeed 
that all the people did not pursue their avocations and 
24 


370 


THE SEA LIONS. 


amusements outside, at what was called the middle of the 
day. 

And what a meridian it was ! The shortest day had 
passed some time, when Roswell and Stimson were walking 
together on the terrace, then, as usual, as clear from snow 
as if swept by a broom; but otherwise wearing the aspect 
of interminable winter, in common with all around it. 
They were conversing, as had been much their wont of 
late, and were watching the passage of the sun as he stole 
along the northern horizon ; even at high noon rising Iwt 
a very few degrees above it ! 

“ It has a cold look, sir, but it does give out some heat,” 
said Stephen, as he faced the luminary, in one of his turns. 
“I can feel a little warmth from it just now, sheltered as 
we are here under the cliffs, and with a background of 
naked rock to throw back what reaches us. To me, all 
these changes in the movements of the sun seem very 
strange, Captain Gar’ner ; but I know I ’m ignorant, and 
that others may well know all about what I do not under- 
stand.” 

Here Gardiner undertook to explain the phenomena that 
have been slightly treated on in our own pages. There 
are few Americans so ignorant as not to be fully aware 
that the sun has no sensible motion, or any motion that 
has an apparent influence on our own planet ; but fewer 
still clearly comprehend the reasons of those very changes 
that are occurring constantly before their eyes. We can- 
not say that Captain Gardiner succeeded very well in his 
undertaking, though he imprinted on the old boat-steerer’s 
mind the fact that the sun would not be seen at all were 
they only a few degrees farther south than they actually 
were. 

“ And now, sir, I suppose he ’ll get higher and higher 
every day,” put in Stephen, “ until he comes quite up above 
our heads ? ” 

“ Not exactly that at noon ; though abeam, as it might 
be, mornings and evenings.” 

“ Still, the coldest of our weather is yet to come, or I 
have no exper’ence in such things. Why does not the heat 


THE SEA LIONS. 


3T1 


come back with the sun — or what seems to be the sun 
coming back ? though, as you tell me, Captain Gar’ner, 
it ’s only the ’arth sheering this-a-way and that-a-way in 
her course.” 

“ One may well ask such a question ; but cold produces 
cold, and it takes time to wear it out. February is com- 
monly the coldest month in the year, even in America ; 
though days occur in other months that may be colder than 
any ono in February. March, and even April, are months 
I dread here ; and that so much the more, Stephen, because 
sur fuel goes a good deal faster than I could wish.” 

What you say is very true, sir. Still, the people must 
have fire. I turned out this morning, while all hands were 
still m their berths, and looked to the stove, and it was as 
much as human natur’ could bear to be about without my 
cap and skin-covering ; though in-doors the whole time. 
If the weather goes on as it has begun, we shall have to 
ieep a watch at the stove ; nor do I think one stove will 
answer us much longer. We shall want another in the 
sleeping-room.” 

“ Heaven knows where the wood is to come from ! Un- 
less Captain Daggett gives up the wreck, we shall certainly 
be out long before the mild season returns.” 

“We must keep ourselves warm, sir, by reading the 
Bible,” answered Simson, smiling ; though the glance he 
cast at his officer was earnest and anxious. “ You must 
not forget, Captain Gar’ner, that you’ve promised one who 
is praying for you daily, to go through the chapters she 
has marked, and give the matter a patient and attentive 
thought. No sealin’, sir, can be half as important as this 
reading of the good book in the right spirit.” 

“ So you believe that Jesus was the Son of God ! ” ex- 
claimed Roswell, half inquiringly, and half in a modified 
sort of levity. 

“ As much as I believe that we are here, sir. I wish I 
Was half as certain of our ever getting away.” 

“ What has caused you to believe this, Stimson ? rea- 
son, or the talk of your mother and of the parson ? ” 

“ My mother died afore I could listen to her talk, sir 


372 


THE SEA LIONS. 


and very little have I had to do with parsons, for the want 
of being where they are to be found. Faith tells me to 
believe this ; and Faith comes from God.” 

“And I could believe it, too, were Faith imparted to me 
from the same source. As it is, I fear I shall never be- 
lieve in what appears to me to be an impossibility.” 

Then followed a long discussion, in which ingenuity, 
considerable command of language, human pride, and 
worldly sentiments contended with that clear, intuitive, 
deep conviction, which it is the pleasure of the Deity often 
to bestow on those who would otherwise seem to be un- 
fitted to become the repositories of so great a gift. As we 
shall have to deal with this part of our subject more par- 
ticularly hereafter, we shall not enlarge on it here ; but 
pursue the narrative as it is connected with the advance of 
the season, and the influence the latter sxerted over the 
whole party of the lost sealers. 


THE SEA LIONS 


373 


CHAPTER XXV. 

Beyond the Jewish ruler, banded close, 

A company full glorious, I saw 

The twelve apostles stand. Oh, with what looks 

Of ravishment and joy, what rapturous tears; 

What hearts of ecstasy, they gazed again 
On their beloved Master. 

Hillhouse’s Judgment. 

It has become necessary to advance the season to the 
beginning of the month of October, which corresponds to 
our own April. In a temperate climate, this would mark 
the opening of spring ; and the reviving hopes of a new 
and genial season would find a place in every bosom. Not 
so at Sealer’s Land. So long as the winter was at its 
height, and the clear, steady cold continued, by falling into 
a system so prepared as to meet the wants of such a re- 
gion, matters had gone on regularly, if not with comfort ; 
and, as yet, the personal disasters were confined to a few 
frozen cheeks and noses, the results of carelessness and 
wanton exposure, rather than of absolute necessity. But 
one who had seen the place in July, and who examined it 
now, would find many marks of change, not to say of de- 
terioration. 

In the first place, a vast deal of snow had fallen ; fallen, 
indeed, to such a degree as even to cover the terrace, 
block up the path that communicated with the wreck, and 
nearly to smother the house and all around it. The winds 
were high and piercing, rendering the cold doubly pene- 
trating. The thermometer now varied essentially, some- 
times rising considerably above zero, though oftener falling 
far below it. There had been many storms in September, 
and October was opening with a most blustering and win- 
try aspect. In one sense, however, the character of the 


374 


THE SEA LIONS. 


season had changed ; the dry, equal cold, that was gener- 
ally supportable, having been succeeded by tempests that 
were sometimes a little moist, but oftener of intense frigid- 
ity. Of course the equinox was past, and there were 
more than twelve hours of sun. The great luminary 
showed himself well above the northern horizon ; and 
though his circuit described an arch that did not promise 
soon to bring him near the zenith at meridian, it was a cir- 
cuit that seemed about to inclose Sealer’s Land, by carry 
ing the orb of day so far south, morning and evening, as 
to give it an air of traveling round the spot. 

These changes had not occurred without suffering and 
danger. Enormous icicles were suspended from the roof 
of the house, reaching to the ground, the third and fourth 
successions of these signs of heat and cold united, the 
earlier formations having been knocked down and thrown 
away. Mountains of drifted snow were to be seen in 
places, all along the shore ; and wreaths that threatened 
fearful avalanches were suspended from the cliffs, waiting 
only for the increase of the warmth, to come down upon 
the rocks beneath. Once already had one of these masses 
fallen on the wreck ; and the Oyster Pond men had been 
busy for a week digging into the pile, in order to go to the 
rescue of the Vineyarders. There was much generosity 
and charitable feeling displayed in this act ; for, owing to 
the obstinate adherence of Daggett and his people to what 
they deemed their rights, Roswell had finally been com- 
pelled to cut to pieces the upper works of his own schooner 
to obtain fuel that might prevent his own party from 
freezing to death. The position of the Sea Lion of Oys- 
ter Pond was to be traced only by a high mound of snow, 
which had been arrested by the obstacle she presented to 
its drift ; but her bulwarks, planks, deck, top-timbers, stern- 
frame— in short, nearly all of the vessel above water, had 
actually been taken to pieces, and carried within the cov- 
ering of the veranda mentioned, in readiness for the 
stoves ! 

To render the obstinacy of the other crew more ap- 
parent, Daggett had been obliged to do the same ! Much 


THE SEA LIONS. 


375 


of his beloved craft had already disappeared in the cnm- 
boose, and more was likely to follow. This compelled 
destruction, however, rather increased than lessened his 
pertinacity. He clung to the last chip ; and no terms of 
compromise would he now listen to at all. The stranded 
wreck was his, and his people’s ; while the other wreck 
belonged to the men from Oyster Pond. Let each party 
act for itself, and take care of its own. Such were his 
expressed opinions, and on them he acted. 

This state of things had not been brought about in a 
day. Months had passed ; Roswell had seen his last billet 
of wood put in the camboose ; had tried" various experi- 
ments for producing heat by means of oil, which so far 
succeeded as to enable the ordinary boiling to be done, 
thereby saving wood ; but, when a cold turn set in, it was 
quickly found that the schooner must go, or all hands per- 
ish. When this decree went forth, every one understood 
that the final preservation of the party depended on that 
of the boats. For one entire day the question had been 
up in general council, whether or not the two whaleboats 
should be burnt, with their oars and appurtenances, before 
the attack was made on the schooner itself. Stimson set- 
tled this point, as he did so many others, Roswell listening 
to all he said with a constantly increasing attention. 

“ If we burn the boats first,” said the boat-steerer, “ and 
then have to come to the schooner a’ter all, how are we 
ever to get away from this group ? Them boats would n’t 
last us a week, even in our best weather ; but they may 
answer to take us to some Christian land, when every rib 
and splinter of the Sea Lion is turned into ashes. I 
would begin on the upper works of the schooner first, Cap- 
tain Gar’ner, resarvin’ the spars, though they wosld burn 
the freest. Then I would saw away the top-timbers, 
beams, decks, transoms, and everything down within a foot 
of the water ; but I would n’t touch anything below the 
copper, for this here reason : unless Captain Daggett sets 
to work on his craft and burns her up altogether, we may 
find mater’als enough in the spring to deck over ag’in the 
poor thing down there in the cove, and fit her out a’ter a 


376 


THE SEA LIONS. 


fashion, and make much better weather of it in her than in 
our boats. That ’s my opinion, sir.” 

It was decided that this line of conduct should be pur- 
sued. The upper works of the schooner were all taken 
out of her as soon as the weather permitted, and the wood 
was carried jap and stored in the house. Even with this 
supply, it was soon seen that great economy was to be used, 
and that there might be the necessity of getting at the 
vessel’s bottom. As for the schooner, as the people still 
affectionately called the hull, or what was left of the hull, 
everything had been taken out of her. The frozen oil was 
carried up to the house in chunks, and used for fuel and 
lights. A good deal of heat was obtained by making large 
wicks of canvas, and placing them in vessels that contained 
oil ; though it was very far from sufficing to keep life in 
the men during the hardest of the weather. The utmost 
economy in the use of the fuel that had been so dearly ob- 
tained, was still deemed all-essential to eventual preserva- 
tion. Happily, the season advanced all this time, and the 
month of October was reached. The intercourse between 
the crews had by no means been great during the two 
solemn and critical months that were just past. A few 
visits had been exchanged at noon-day, and when the ther- 
mometer was a little above zero ; but the snow was filling 
the path, and as yet there were no thaws to produce a 
crust on which the men might walk. 

About a month previously to the precise time to which 
it is our intention now to advance the more regular action 
of the legend, Macy had come over to the house, attended 
by one man, with a proposal on the part of Daggett for the 
two crews to occupy his craft, as he still persisted in calling 
the wreck, and of using the house as fuel. This was pre- 
viously to beginning to break up either vessel. Gardiner 
had thought of this plan in connection with his own 
schooner, a scheme that would have been much more feasi- 
ble than that now proposed, on account of the difference 
in distance ; but it had soon been abandoned. All the 
material of the building was of pine, and that well seasoned ; 
a wood that burns like tinder. No doubt there would 


THE SEA LIONS. 


377 


have been a tolerably comfortable fortnight or three weeks 
by making these sacrifices ; then would have come certain 
destruction. 

As to the proposal of Daggett, there were many objec- 
tions to it. A want of room would be one ; want of pro- 
visions another ; and there would be the necessity of trans- 
porting stores, bedding, and a hundred things that were 
almost as necessary to* the people as warmth ; and which 
indeed contributed largely to their warmth. In addition 
was the objection just mentioned, of the insufficiency of 
the materials of the building ; an objection which was just 
as applicable to a residence in one vessel as a residence in 
the other. Of course the proposition was declined. 

Macy remained a night with the Oyster Ponders, and 
left the house after breakfast next morning ; knowing that 
Daggett only waited for his return with a negative, to com- 
mence breaking up the wreck. The mate was attended by 
the seaman, returning as he had arrived. Two days later, 
there having been a slight yielding of the snow under the 
warmth of the noon-day sun, and a consequent hardening 
of its crust in the succeeding night, Roswell and Stimson 
undertook to return this visit, with a view to make a last 
effort to persuade Daggett to quit the wreck and come over 
to the house altogether. When they had got about half- 
way between the two places, they found the body of the 
seaman, stiff, frozen hard, and dead. A quarter of a mile 
farther on, the reckless Macy, w*ho it was supposed greatly 
sustained Daggett in his obstinacy, was found in precisely 
the same state. Both had fallen in the path, and stiffened 
under the terrible power of the climate. It was not with- 
out difficulty that Roswell reached the wreck, and reported 
what he had seen. Even this terrible admonition did not 
change Daggett’s purpose. He had begun to burn his 
vessel, for there was now no alternative ; but he was doing 
it on a system which, as he explained it to Roswell, was 
not only to leave him materials with which to construct a 
smaller craft in the spring, but which would allow of his 
inhabiting the steerage and cabin as long as he pleased. 

In some respects the wreck certainly had its advantages 


378 


THE SEA LIONS. 


over the house. There was more room for exercise, the 
caverns of the ice being extensive, while they completely 
excluded the wind, which was now the great danger of the 
season. It was doubtless owing to the wind that Macy ana 
his companion had perished. As the spring approached, 
these winds increased in violence ; though there had been 
slight symptoms of their coming more blandly, even at the 
time when their colder currents \tere really frightful. 

A whole month succeeded this visit of Roswell’s during \ 
which there was no intercourse. It was September, the 
March of the antarctic circle, and the weather had been 
terrific during most of the period. It was during these 
terrible four weeks that Roswell completed his examination 
of the all-important subject Mary had marked out for him, 
and which Stimson had so earnestly and so often placed 
before his mind. The sudden fate of Macy and his com- 
panion, the condition of his crew, and all the serious cir- 
cumstances with which he was surrounded, conspired to 
predispose him to inquiry ; and, what was equally important 
in such an investigation, to humility. Man is a very dif- 
ferent being in high prosperity from what he becomes when 
the blows of an evil fortune, or the visitations of Divine 
Providence alight upon him. The skepticism of Roswell 
was more the result of human pride, of confidence in him- 
self, than in any precept derived from others, or of any 
deep reasoning process whatever. He conceived that the 
theory of the incarnation of the Son of God was opposed 
to philosophy and experience, it is true ; and, thus far, he 
may be said to have reasoned in the matter, though it was 
in his own way, and with a very contracted view of the 
subject ; but pride had much more to do with even this 
conclusion, than a knowledge of physics or philosophy. It 
did not comport with the respect he entertaiued for his 
own powers, to lend his faith to an account that conflicted 
with so many of the opinions he had formed on evidence 
and practice. Credulous women might have their convic- 
tions on the truth of this history, but it was not necessary 
for men to be as easily duped. There was something even 
amiable and attractive in this weakness of' the other sex, 


THE SEA LIONS. 


879 


that would ill comport, however, with the greater sternness 
of masculine judgment. Roswell, as he once told Stimson, 
hesitated to believe in anything that he could not compre- 
hend. His God must be worshiped for the obvious truth 
of his attributes and existence. He wished to speak with 
respect of things that so many worthy people -reverenced ; 
but he could not forget that Providence had made him a 
reasoning creature ; and his reason must be convinced. 
Stephen was no great logician, as the reader will easily 
understand ; but Newton possessed no clearer demonstra- 
tion of any of his problems than this simple, nay ignorant, 
man enjoyed in his religious faith, through the divine illu- 
mination it had received in the visit of the Holy Spirit. 

That gloomy month, however, had not been thrown 
away. All the men were disposed to be serious ; and the 
reading of the Bible, openly and aloud, soon became a 
favorite occupation with every one of them. Although 
Roswell’s reading was directed by the marks of Mary, all 
of which had reference to those passages that touched on 
the Divinity of the Saviour, he made no comments that 
betrayed his incredulity. There is a simple earnestness in 
the narrative portions of the Gospel that commends its 
truth to every mind, and it had its effect on that of Roswell 
Gardiner ; though it failed to remove doubts that had so 
long been cherished, and which had their existence in pride 
of reason, or what passes for such, with those who merely 
skim the surface of things, as they seem to exist around 
them. 

On the evening of that particular day in October, to 
which we desire now to advance the time, and after the 
most pleasant and cheerful afternoon and sunset that any 
on the island had seen for many months, Roswell and 
Stimson ventured to continue their exercise on the terrace, 
then again clear of impediments, even after the day had 
closed. The night promised to be cold, but the weather 
was not yet so keen as to drive them to a shelter. Both 
fancied there was a feeling of spring in the wind, which 
was from the northeast, a quarter that brought the blandest 
currents of air into those seas, if any air of that region de* 
served such a term at all. 


380 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ It is high time we had some communications with the 
Vineyarders,” said Roswell, as they turned at that end of 
the terrace which was nearest to the wreck. “ A full 
month has passed since we have seen any of them, or have 
heard a syllable of their doings or welfare.” 

“It’s a bad business, this separation, Captain Gar’ner,” 
returned the boat-steerer ; “ and every hour makes it worse. 
Think how much good might have been done them young 
men had they only been with us while we ’ve been reading 
the book of books, night and morning, sir ! ” 

“ That good book seems to fill most of your thoughts, 
Stephen. I wish I could have your faith.” 

“ It will come in time, sir, if you will only strive for it. 
I ’m sure no heart could have been harder than mine was. 
until within the last five years. I was far worse as a Chris- 
tian, Captain Gar’ner, than I consider you to be ; for while 
you have doubts consarning the Divinity of our Blessed 
Lord, I had no thought of any one of the Trinity. My 
only God was the world ; and sich a world, too, as a poor 
sailor knows. It was being but little better than the 
brutes.” 

“ Of all the men with me, you seem to be the most con- 
tented and happy. I cannot say I have seen even a sign 
of fear about you, when things have been at the worst.” 

“ It would be very ungrateful, sir, to mistrust a Provi- 
dence that has done so much for me.” 

“ I devoutly wish I could believe with you that Jesus 
was the Son of God ! ” 

“ Excuse me, Captain Gar’ner ; it ’s jist because you do 
not devoutly wish this, that you do not believe. I think I 
understand the natur’ of your feelin’s, sir. I had some 
sich once, myself ; though it was only in a small way. I 
was too ignorant to feel much pride in my own judgment, 
and soon gave up every notion that went ag’in Scriptur’. 
I own it is not accordin’ to natur’, as we know natur’, to 
believe in this doctrine ; but we know too little of a thou- 
sand things to set up our weak judgments in the very face 
of revelation.” 

“Iam quite willing to believe all I can understand, Ste- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


381 


phen ; but T find it difficult to credit accounts that are ir- 
reconcilable with all that my experience has taught me to 
be true.” 

“ They who are of your way of thinking sir, do not deny 
that Christ was a good man and a prophet ; and that the 
apostles were good men and prophets ; and that they all 
worked miracles.” 

“ This much I am willing enough to believe ; but the 
other doctrine seems contrary to what is possible.” 

“ Yet you have seen, sir, that these apostles believed 
what you refuse. One thing has crossed my mind, Captain 
Gar’ner, which I wish to say to you. I know I ’m but an 
ignorant man, and my idees may be hardly worth your no 
tice ; but sich as they be, I want to lay ’em afore you. We 
are told that these apostles were all men from a humble 
class in life, with little Tamin’, chosen, as it might be, to 
show men that faith stood in need of no riches, or edica- 
tion, or worldly greatness, of any sort. To me, sir, there 
is a wholesome idee in that one thing.” 

“ It gives us all a useful lesson, Stephen, and has often 
been mentioned, I believe, in connection with the doctrines 
of Christianity.” 

“ Yes, sir — so I should think ; though I don’t remember 
ever to have heard it named from any pulpit. Well, Cap- 
tain Gar’ner, it does not agree with our notions to suppose 
that God himself, a part of the Ruler and Master of the 
Universe, should be born of a woman, and come among 
sinners in order to save ’em from his own just judgments.” 

“ That is just the difficulty that I have in believing what 
are called the dogmas of Christianity on that one point. 
To me, it has ever seemed the most improbable thing in 
the world.” 

“ Just so, sir — I had some sort of feelin’ of that natur’ 
myself, once. When God, in his goodness, put it into my 
heart to believe, however, as he was pleased to do in a fit 
of sickness from which I never expected to rise, and in 
which I was led to pray to him for assistance, I began to 
think over all these matters in my own foolish manner. 
Among other things, I said to myself, 1 Is it likely that any 


382 


THE SEA LIONS. 


mortal mao would dream of calling Christ the Son of God, 
unless it was put into his mind to saj so ? ’ Then comes 
the characters of them men, who all admit were upright 
and religious. How can we suppose that they would agree 
in giving the same account of sich a thing, unless what they 
said had been told to them by some tongue that they be- 
lieved ? ” 

Roswell smiled at Stephen’s reasoning, which was not 
without a certain point, but which an ingenious man might 
find the means of answering in various ways. 

“ There is another thing, sir, that I ’ve read in a book,” 
resumed the boat-steerer, “ which goes a great way with 
me. Jesus allowed others to call him the Son of God, 
without rebuking them for doing so. It does really seem 
that they who believe he was a good man, as I understand 
is the case with you, Captain Gar’ner, must consider this 
as a strong fact. We are to remember what a sin idolatry 
is ; how much all ra’al worshipers abhor it ; and then set 
that feelin’ side by side with the fact that the Son did not 
think it robbery to be called the equal of the Father. To 
me, that looks like a proof that our belief has a solid foun- 
dation.” 

Roswell did not reply. He was aware that it would not 
be just to hold any creed responsible for the manner in 
which a person like Stimson defended it. Still, he was 
struck with both of this man’s facts. The last, he had 
often met in books ; but the first was new to him. Of the 
two, this novel idea of the improbability of the apostles’ 
inventing that which would seem to be opposed to all men’s 
notions and prejudices, struck him more forcibly than the 
argument adduced from the acquiescence of the Redeemer 
in his own divinity. The last might be subject to verbal 
criticism, and could possibly be explained away, as he im- 
agined ; but the first appeared to be intimately incorporated 
with the entire history of Christ’s ministrations on earth. 
These were the declarations of John the Baptist, the simple 
and unpretending histories of the Gospels, the commenta- 
ries of St. Paul, and the venerable teachings of the church 
through so many centuries of varying degrees ol 1'aith and 


THE SEA LIONS, 


883 


contention, each and all going to corroborate a doctrine 
that, in his eyes, had appeared to be so repugnant to phi- 
losophy and reason. Wishing to be alone, Roswell gave 
an order to Stimson to execute some duty that fell to his 
share, and continued walking up and down the terrace alone 
for quite an hour longer. 

The night was coming in cold and still. It was one of 
those last efforts of winter in which all the terrible force 
of the season was concentrated ; and it really appeared as 
if Nature, wearied with its struggle to return to a more 
genial temperature, yielded in despair, and was literally re- 
turning backwards through the coldest of her months. The 
moon was young, but the stars gave forth a brightness that 
is rarely seen, except in the clear cold nights of a high lat- 
itude. Each and all of these sublime emblems of the 
power of God were twinkling like bright torches glowing 
in space ; and the mind had only to endow each with its 
probable or known dimensions, its conjectural and reason- 
able uses, to form a picture of the truest sublimity, in which 
man is made to occupy his real position. In this world, 
where in a certain sense he is master, where all things are 
apparently under his influence, if not absolutely subject to 
his control ; where little that is distinctly visible is to be met 
with that does not seem to be created to meet his wants, 
or to be wholly at his disposal, one gets a mistaken and 
frequently a fatal notion of his true place in the scale of 
the beings who are intended to throng around the footstool 
of the Almighty. As the animalculae of the atmospheric 
air bear a proportion to things visible, so would this throng 
seem to bear a proportion to our vague estimates of the 
spiritual hosts. All this Roswell was very capable of feel- 
ing and in some measure of appreciating ; and never be- 
fore had he been made so conscious of his own insignifi- 
cance as he became while looking on the firmament that 
night, glowing with its bright worlds and suns, doubtless 
the centres of other systems in which distance swallowed 
up the lesser orbs. 

Almost every one has heard or read of that collection 
of stars which goes by the name of the Southern Cross. 


384 


THE SEA LIONS. 


The resemblance to the tree on which Christ suffered is 
not particularly striking, though all who navigate the 
southern hemisphere know it, and recognize it by its im- 
puted appellation. It now attracted Roswell’s gaze ; and 
coming as it did after so much reading, so many conversa- 
tions with Stephen, and addressing itself to one whose heart 
was softened by the fearful circumstances that had so long 
environed the sealers, it is not surprising that it brought 
our young master to meditate seriously on his true condi- 
tion in connection with the atonement that he was willing 
to admit had been made for him, in common with all of 
earth, at the very moment he hesitated to believe that the 
sufferer was, in any other than a metaphorical sense, the 
Son of God. 

It is not our intention to describe more of the religious 
feelings of Mary and her suitor, or to enter farther into 
any disquisition on subjects of this nature, than may be 
absolutely necessary to elucidate the facts of our history. 
In order to do the last distinctly, however, we shall endeavor 
to make a very brief analysis of the process of reasoning, 
and we may add of feeling, too, that was at work in Ros- 
well Gardiner’s mind and heart, as he paced the terrace 
that night, after Stimson had left him. 

We suppose that a sense of humility is the first health- 
ful symptom that shows itself in every man’s moral re- 
generation. A meek appreciation of his own station and 
character disposes him to receive revelation with respect, 
and to have faith in things that are not seen. Perhaps no 
one over whom the sword of fate was not actually suspended 
by a hair was ever better placed to admit the lessons of 
humility than was Roswell Gardiner at that very moment. 
Modest he always was, in the ordinary acceptation of the 
term, and this without professions or grimaces ; but he 
had a high idea of the human understanding, and revolted 
at believing that which did violence to all his experience 
and preconceived opinions. This was the weak spot in his 
character, which time, with an increasing knowledge of men 
and things, or some merciful teaching of Divine Provi- 
dence, could alone remove. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


885 


Roswell certainly did not converse with Stimson in the 
expectation of being much instructed ; but the humble and 
uneducated boat-steerer had been at a school that raises 
the dullest intellect far above all the inferences of philoso- 
phy. He had faith, without which no man is truly wise ; 
no man learned, in the highest interest of his being. Un- 
der the guidance of this leader, Stephen occasionally threw 
out an idea that struck the mind of his officer by its sim- 
plicity and force, and helped to complete that change for 
which circumstances, reading, and reflection had now been 
many months preparing the way. The day preceding this 
walk on the terrace, Roswell observed to Stimson that he 
had difficulty in believing in a Deity he could not com- 
prehend ; meaning merely that his reason must be satisfied 
in a doctrine like that of the incarnation. 

“Well, sir, that’s not my feelin’,” answered Stephen, 
earnestly. “ A Deity I could understand would be no 
God for me. Where there is the same knowledge, there 
is too much companionship, like, for worship and rever- 
ence.” 

“ But we are told that man was created after the image 
of God.” 

“ In his likeness, Captain Gar’ner — with some of the 
Divine Spirit, but not with all. That makes him different 
from the brutes, and immortal. I have convarsed with a 
clergyman who thinks that the angels and archangels, and 
other heavenly beings, are far before even the saints in 
heaven, such as have been only men on ’arth.” 

The idea of not having a Deity that he could not com- 
prehend had long been one of Roswell Gardiner’s favorite 
rules of faith. He did not understand by this pretending 
dogma that he was, in any respect, of capacity equal to 
comprehend with that of the Divine Being, but simply 
that he was not to be expected or required to believe in 
any theory which manifestly conflicted with his knowl- 
edge and experience, as both were controlled by the 
powers of induction he had derived directly from his 
Creator. In a word, his exception was one of the most 
obvious of the suggestions of the pride of reason, and just 
25 


386 


THE SEA LIONS. 


so much in direct opposition to the great law of regenera 
tion, which has its very gist in the converse of this feeling 
— faith. 

As our young master paced the terrace alone, that idea 
of the necessity of the Creator’s being incomprehensible to 
the created recurred to him. The hour that succeeded 
was probably the most important in Roswell Gardiner’s 
life. So intense were his feelings, so active the workings 
of his mind, that he was quite insensible to the intensity 
of the cold ; and his body keeping equal motion with his 
thoughts, if one may so express it, his frame actually set 
at defiance a temperature that might otherwise have chilled 
it, warmly and carefully as it was clad. 

Truly, there were many causes existing at that time and 
place to bring any man to a just sense of his real position 
in the scale of created beings. The vault above Roswell 
was sparkling with orbs floating in space, most of them far 
more vast than this earth, and each of them doubtless hav- 
ing its present or destined use. What was that light, so 
brilliant and pervading throughout space, that converted 
each of those masses of dark matter into globes clothed 
with a glorious brightness ? Roswell had seen chemical 
experiments that produced wonderful illuminations ; but 
faint, indeed, were the most glowing of those artificial 
torches, to the floods of light that came streaming out of 
the void, on missions of millions and millions of miles. 
Who and what was the Dread Being — dread in his maj- 
esty and justice, but inexhaustible in love and mercy — 
who used these exceeding means as mere instruments of his 
pleasure ? and what was he himself, that he should presume 
to set up his miserable pride of reason in opposition to a 
revelation supported by miracles that must be admitted to 
come through men inspired by the Deity, or rejected alto- 
gether ? 

In this frame of mind Roswell was made to see that 
Christianity admitted of no half-way belief ; it was all true, 
01 it was wholly false. 

And why should not Christ be the Son of God, as the 
Fathers of the church had perseveringly but so simply 


THE SEA LIONS. 


387 


proclaimed, and as that church had continued to teach for 
eighteen centuries ? Roswell believed himself to have 
been created in the image of God ; and his much-prized 
reason told him that he could perpetuate himself in succes- 
sors ; and that which the Creator had given him the power 
to achieve, could he not in his own person perform ? For 
the first time, an inference to the contrary seemed to be il- 
logical. 

Then the necessity for the great expiation occurred to 
his mind. This had always been a stumbling-block to Ros- 
well’s faith. He could not see it ; and that which he could 
not see he was indisposed to believe. Here was the beset- 
ting weakness of his character ; a weakness which did not 
suffer him to perceive that could he comprehend so pro- 
found a mystery, he would be raised far above that very 
nature in which he took so much pride. As he reflected 
on this branch of the subject, a thousand mysteries, phys- 
ical and moral, floated before his mind ; and he became 
aware of the. little probability that he should have been 
endowed with the faculties to comprehend this, the greatest 
of them all. Had not science gradually discovered the 
chemical processes by which gases could be concentrated 
and disengaged, the formation of one of those glittering 
orbs above his head would have been quite as unintelligible 
a mystery to him as the incarnation of the Saviour. The 
fact was that phenomena that were just as mysterious to 
the human mind as any that the dogmas of Christianity 
required to be believed exist hourly before our eyes with- 
out awakening skepticism or exciting discussion ; finding 
their impunity in their familiarity. Many of these phe- 
nomena were strictly incomprehensible to human understand- 
ing, which could reason up to a fountain-head in each case ; 
and there it was obliged to abandon the inductive process, 
purely for the want of power to grapple with the premises 
which control the whole demonstration. 

Could Mary Pratt have known what was going on in 
Roswell Gardiner's soul that night, her happiness would 
have been as boundless as her gratitude to God. She would 


388 


THE SEA LIONS. 


have seen the barrier that had so long interposed itself to 
her wishes broken down ; not by any rude hand, but by the 
influence of those whisperings of the Divine Spirit, which 
open the way to men to fit themselves for the presence of 

God. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


389 


CHAPTER XXVI. 

Let winter come ! let polar spirits sweep 
The darkening world and tempest- troubled deep ! 

Campbell. 

While the bosom of Roswell was thus warming with 
the newborn faith, of which the germ was just opening in 
bis heart, Stimson came out upon the terrace to see what 
had become of his officer. It was much past the hour when 
the men got beneath the coverings of their mattresses ; and 
the honest boat-steerer, who had performed the duty on 
which he had been sent, was anxious about Roswell’s re- 
maining so long in the open air, on this positively the se- 
verest night of the whole season. 

“ You stand the cold well, Captain Gar’ner,” said Ste- 
phen, as he joined his officer ; “ but it might be prudent 
now to get under cover.” 

“ I do not feel it cold, Stephen,” returned Roswell ; 
u on the contrary, I’m in a pleasant glow. My mind has 
been busy, while my frame has kept in motion. When 
such are the facts, the body seldom suffers. But, hearken 
— does it not seem that some one is calling to us from the 
direction of the wreck ? ” 

The great distance to which sounds are conveyed in in- 
tensely cold and clear weather is a fact known to most 
persons. Conversations in the ordinary tone had been 
heard by the sealers when the. speakers were nearly a mile 
off* ; and, on several occasions, attempts had been made to 
hold communications, by means of the voice, between the 
wreck and the hut. Certain words had been understood ; 
but it was found impossible to hold anything that could be 
termed conversation. Still, the voice had been often heard, 
and a fancy had come over the mind of Roswell that he 


{190 


THE SEA LIONS 


heard a cry like a call for assistance, just as Stimson joined 
him. 

“ It is so late, sir, that I should hardly think any of the 
Vineyarders would be up,” observed the boat-steerer, after 
listening some little time in the desire to catch the sound 
mentioned. .“Then it is so cold, that most men would like 
to get beneath their blankets as soon as they could.” 

“ I do not find it so very cold, Stephen. Have you 
looked at the thermometer lately ? ” 

“ I gave it a look in coming out, sir ; and it tells a terri- 
ble story to-night ! The marcury is all down in the ball, 
which is like givin’ the matter up, I do suppose, Captain 
Gar’ner.” 

“ ’T is strange ! I do not feel it so very cold ! The wind 
seems to be getting round to northeast, too ; give us 
enough of that, and we shall have a thaw. Hark ! there 
is the cry again.” 

This time there could be no mistake. A human voice 
had certainly been raised amid the stillness of that almost 
polar night, clearly appealing to human ears, for succor. 
The only word heard or comprehended was that of 
“ help ; ” one well enough adapted to carry the sound far 
and distinctly. There was a strain of agony in the cry, as 
if he who made it uttered it in despair. Roswell’s blood 
seemed to flow back to his heart ; never had he before felt 
so appalling a sense of the dependence of man on a Di- 
vine Providence, as at that moment. 

“You heard it?” he said, inquiringly, to Stephen, after 
an instant of silent attention, to make sure that no more 
was to reach his ears just then. 

“ Sartain, sir — no man could mistake that . It was the 
voice of the nigger, Joe ; him that Captain Daggett has 
for a cook.” 

“ Think you so, Stephen ? The fellow has good lungs, 
and they may have set him to call upon us in their dis- 
tress. What can be the nature of the assistance they 
ask?” 

“ I ’ve been thinking of that, Captain Gar’ner ; and a 
difficult p’int it is to answer. Food they must have still 


THE SEA LIONS. 


391 


and was they in want of their rations, hands would have 
been sent across to get ’em. They may have let their fire 
go out, and be without the means to relight it. I can 
think of nothing else that is likely to happen to men so 
sarcumstanced.” 

The last suggestion struck Roswell as possible. From 
the instant he felt certain that he was called on for aid, he 
had determined to proceed to the wreck, notwithstanding 
the lateness of the hour and the intense severity of the 
weather. As he had intimated to Stephen, he was not at 
all conscious how very cold it was ; exercise and the active 
workings of his mind having brought him to an excellent 
condition to resist the sternness of the season. The ap- 
peal had been so sudden and unexpected, however, that he 
was at first somewhat at a loss how to proceed. This 
matter was now discussed between him and Stimson, when 
the following plan was adopted : — 

The mates were to be called and made acquainted with 
what had occurred, and put on their guard as to what 
might possibly be required of them. It was not thought 
necessary to call any of the rest of the men. There was 
always one hand on the watch in the house, whose duty it 
was to look to the fires, for the double purpose of security 
against a conflagration, and to prevent the warmth within 
from sinking too near to the cold without. It had often 
occurred to Roswell’s mind that a conflagration would 
prove quick destruction to his party. In the first place, 
most of the provisions would be lost ; and it was certain 
that, without a covering and the means of keeping warm 
within it, the men could not resist the climate eight-and- 
forty hours. The burning of the hut would be certain 
death. 

Roswell took no one with him but Stimson. Two were 
as good as a hundred, if all that was asked were merely 
the means to relight the fire. These means were pro- 
vided, and a loaded pistol was taken also, to enable a sig- 
nal-shot to be fired, should circumstances seem to require 
further aid. One or two modes of communicating leading 
facts were concerted, when our hero and his companion set 
forth on their momentous journey. 


392 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Taking the hour, the weather, and the object before him 
into the account, Roswell Gardiner felt that he was now 
enlisted in the most important undertaking of his whole 
life, as he and Stephen shook hands with the two mates 
and left the point. The drifts rendered a somewhat cir- 
cuitous path .necessary at first ; but the moon and stars 
shed so much of their radiance on the frozen covering of 
the earth, that the night was quite as light as many a Lon- 
don day. Excitement and motion kept the blood of our 
twc adventurers in a brisk circulation, and prevented their 
becoming immediately conscious of the chill intensity of 
the cold to which they were exposed. 

“ It is good to think of Almighty God, and of his many 
marcies,” said Stephen, when a short distance from the 
house, “as a body goes forth on an expedition as serious 
as this. We may not live to reach the wrack, for it seems 
to me to grow coider and colder I ’* 

“ I wonder we hear no more of the cries,” remarked 
Roswell, who was thinking of the distress he was bent on 
relieving. “ One would think that a man who could call 
so stoutly would give us another cry.” 

“ A body can never calcilate on a nigger,” answered 
Stephen, who had the popular American prejudice against 
the caste that has so long been held in servitude in the 
land. “ Tfyey call out easily, and shut up oncommon 
quick, if there ’s. nothin’ gained by yelling. Black blood 
won’t stand cold like white blood, Captain Gar’ner, any 
more than white blood will stand heat like black blood.” 

“ I have heard this before, Stephen ; and it has sur- 
prised me that Captain Daggett’s cook should be the otalj 
one of that party who seems to have had any voice to- 
night.” 

Stimson had a good deal to say now, as the two picked 
the'r way across the field of snow, always walking on the 
crust, which in most places would have upheld a loaded 
vehicle ; the subject of his remarks being the difference 
between the two races as respects their ability to endure 
hardships. The worthy boat-steerer had several tales to 
relate of cases in which he had known negroes to freeze 


THE SEA LIONS. 


393 


when whites had escaped. As the fact is one pretty well 
established, Roswell listened complacently enough, being 
much too earnest in pressing forward toward his object to 
debate any of his companion’s theories just then. It was 
while thus employed that Roswell fancied he heard one 
more cry, resembling those which had brought him on this 
dangerous undertaking, on a night so fearful. This time, 
however, the cry was quite faint ; and what was not so 
easily explained, it did not appear to come from the precise 
direction in which the wreck was known to lie, but from 
one that diverged considerably from that particular quar- 
ter. Of course, the officer mentioned this circumstance to 
the boat-steerer ; and the extraordinary part of the infor- 
mation caused some particular discussion between them. 

“ To me that last call seemed to come from up yonder, 
nearer to the cliffs than the place where we are, and not 
at all from down there, near to the sea, where the wrack 
is,” said Stimson, in the course of his remarks. “ So sar- 
tain am I of this, that I feel anxious to change our course 
a little, to see if it be not possible that one of the Vine- 
yarders has got into some difficulty in trying to come across 
to us.” 

Roswell had the same desire, for he had made the same 
conjecture ; though he did not believe the black would be 
the person chosen to be the messenger on sjich an occa- 
sion. 

“ I think Captain Daggett would have come himself, or 
have sent one of his best men,” he observed, “ in prefer- 
ence to trusting a negro with a duty so important.” 

“We do not know, sir, that it was the nigger we heard. 
Misery makes much the same cries, whether it comes from 
the throat of white or black. Let us work upward, nearer 
to the cliffs, sir ; I see something dark on the snow, here- 
away, as it might be on our larboard bow.” 

Roswell caught a glimpse of the same object, and thither 
our adventurers now bent their steps, walking on the crust 
without any difficulty, so long as they kept out of the drifts. 
One does not find it as easy to make any physical effort in 
an intensely cold atmosphere as he does when the weather 




394 


THE SEA LIONS. 


is more moderate. This prevented Roswell and his com* 
panion from moving as fast as they otherwise might have 
done ; but they got along with sufficient rapidity to reach 
the dark spot on the snow in less than five minutes after 
they had changed their course. 

“ You are right, Stephen,” said Gardiner, as he came up 
to this speck amid the immensity of the white mantle that 
covered both sea and land, far as the eye \jould reach ; “ it 
is the cook ! The poor fellow has given out here, about 
half-way between the two stations.” 

“ There must be life in him yet, sir — nigger as he is. 
It ’s not yet twenty minutes since he gave that last cry. 
Help me to turn him over, Captain Gar’ner, and we will 
rub him, and give him a swallow of brandy. A little hot 
coffee, now, might bring the life back to his heart.” 

Roswell complied, first firing his pistol as a signal to 
those left behind. The negro was not dead, but so near it 
that a very few more minutes would have sealed his fate. 
The applications and frictions used by Gardiner and the 
boat-steerer had an effect. A swallow of the brandy prob- 
ably saved the poor fellow’s life: While working on hi 
patient, Captain Gardiner found a piece of frozen pork 
which, on examination, he ascertained had never beer 
cooked. It at once explained the nature of the calamity 
that had befallen the crew of the wreck. 

So intent were the two on their benevolent duty, that a 
party arrived from the house in obedience to the signal, in 
much less time than they could have hoped for. It was 
led by the mate, and came provided with a lamp burning 
beneath a tin vessel filled with sweetened coffee. This 
hot drink answered an excellent purpose with both well 
and sick. After a swallow or two, aided by a vigorous 
friction, and closely surrounded by so many human bodies, 
the black began to revive ; and the sort of drowsy stupor 
which is known to precede death in those who die by 
freezing having been in a degree shaken off, he was en- 
abled to stand alone, and by means of assistance to walk. 
The hot coffee was of the greatest service, every swallow 
tha* he got down appearing to set the engine of life into 


THE SEA LIONS. 


395 


new motion. The compelled exercise contributed its part ; 
and by the time the mate, to use his own expression, “ had 
run the nigger into dock,” which meant when he had got 
him safe within the hut, his senses and faculties had so far 
revived as to enable him to think and to speak. As Gar- 
diner and Stimson returned with him, everybody was up 
and listening, when the black told his story. 

It would seem that, during the terrible month which had 
just passed, Daggett had compelled his crew to use more 
exercise than had been their practice of late. Some new 
apprehension had come over him on the subject of fuel, 
and his orders to be saving in that article were most 
stringent, and very rigidly enforced. The consequence 
was that the camboose was not as well attended to as it 
had been previously, and as circumstances required, in- 
deed, that it should be. At night, the men were told to 
keep themselves warm with bed-clothes, and by huddling 
together ; and the cabin being small, so many persons 
crowded together in it did not fail to produce an impres- 
sion on its atmosphere. 

Such was the state of things when, on going to his cam- 
boose in order to cook the breakfast, this very black found 
the fire totally extinguished ! Not a spark could he dis- 
cover, even among the ashes ; and, what was even worse, 
the tinder-box had disappeared. As respects the last, it 
may be well to state here that it was afterwards discovered 
carefully bestowed between two of the timbers of the wreck, 
with a view to a particular safe-keeping; the person who 
had mad^ this disposition of it forgetting what he had done. 
The loss of the tinder-box, under the circumstances, was al- 
most as great a calamity as could have befallen men, in 
the situation of the Vineyarders. As against the cold, by 
means of bedclothes, exercise, and other, precautions, it 
might have been possible to exist for some time, provided 
warm food could be obtained ; but the frost penetrated the 
cabin, and every one soon became sensitively alive to the 
awkwardness, not to say danger, of their condition. A 
whole day was passed in fruitless attempts to obtain fire by 
rarious processes. Friction did not succeed ; it probably 


396 


THE SEA LIONS. 


never does with the thermometer at zero. Sparks could be 
obtained, but by this time everything was stiff with the frost. 
The food already cooked was soon as hard as bullets, and 
it was found that, on the second night, brandy that was 
exposed was converted into a lump of ice. Not only did 
the intensity of the cold increase, but everything, even to 
the human system, seemed to be gradually congealing, and 
preparing to become converted into receptacles for frost. 
Several of the men began to suffer in their ears, noses, 
feet, and other extremities, and the bunks were soon the 
only places in which it was found possible to exist in any- 
thing like comfort. No less than three men had been sent 
at intervals of a few hours across to the house, with a view 
to obtain fire, or the means of lighting one, along with 
other articles that were considered necessary to the safety 
of the people. The cook had been the third and last of 
these messengers. He had passed his two shipmates, ^ach 
lying dead on the snow, — or as he supposed, lifeless ; for 
neither gave the smallest sign of vitality, on an examina- 
tion. It was in the agony of alarm produced by these ap- 
palling spectacles that the negro’ had cried aloud for help, 
sending the sounds far enough to reach the ears of Roswell. 
Still he had persevered, until, chilled as much with terror 
as with the cold and the want of warm nourishment, the 
cook had sunk into what would have soon proved to be his 
last long sleep, when the timely succor arrived. 

It was some two hours after the black had been got into 
the hut, and was strengthened with a good hot supper, ere 
he had communicated all the facts just related. * Roswell 
succeeded, however, in getting a little at a time from him ; 
and when no more remained to be related, the plan was 
already arranged for future proceedings. It was quite clear 
no unnecessary delay should be permitted to take place. 
The cold continued to increase in intensity, notwithstand- 
ing it was the opinion of the most experienced among the 
men that a thaw, and a great spring thaw, was approaching. 
It often happens, in climates of an exaggerated character, 
that these extremes almost touch each other, as they are 
•aid to meet in man. 


THE SEA LIONS. 397 

Roswell left the house, for the second time that eventful 
flight, just at the hour of twelve. He now went accom- 
panied by the second mate and a foremast-hand, as well as 
by his old companion, the boat-steerer. Each individual 
drank a bowl of hot coffee before he set out, and a good 
warm supper had also been taken in the interval between 
the return and this new sortie. Experience shows that 
there is no such protector against the effect of cold as 
a full stomach, more especially if the food be warm and 
nourishing. This was understood by Roswell ; and not 
only did he cause the whole party that set forth with him 
at that late and menacing hour to receive this sustenance, 
but he ordered the kettle of boiling coffee to be carried 
with them, and kept two lamps burning, for the double pur- 
pose of maintaining the heat, and of having a fire ready on 
reaching the wreck. The oil of the sea-elephant, together 
with pieces of canvas prepared for the purpose, supplied 
the necessary materials. 

So intensely severe was the weather that Roswell had 
serious thoughts of returning when he reached the spot 
where the black had been found. But the picture of Dag- 
gett’s situation that occurred to his mind urged him on, 
and he proceeded. Every precaution had been taken to 
exclude the cold, as it is usually termed, which, as it re- 
spects the body, means little else than keeping the vital 
heat in, and very useful were these provisions found to be. 
Skins formed the principal defense, though the men had 
long adopted the very simple but excellent expedient of 
wearing two shirts. Owing to this, and to the other meas- 
ures taken, neither of the four was struck with a chill, and 
they all continued on. 

At the place mentioned by the black, the body of one of 
Daggett’s best men, a boat-steerer, was found. The man 
was dead, of course, and the corpse was as rigid as a billet 
of wood. Every particle of moisture in it had congealed, 
until the whole of what had been a very fine and manly 
frame lay little more than a senseless lump of ice. A few 
degrees to the southward of the spot where it was now 
seen, it is probable that this relic of humanity would have 


398 


THE SEA LIONS. 


retained ts form and impression until the trump sounded 
to summon it to meet its former tenant, the spirit, in judg- 
ment. 

No time was lost in useless lamentations over the body 
of this man, who was much of a favorite among the 
Oyster Ponders. Twenty minutes later, the second corpse 
was found ; both the bodies lying in what was the custom- 
ary track between the house and the wreck. It was the 
last that had died ; but, like that of the unfortunate man 
just described, it was in a state to be preserved ten thou- 
sand years, without the occurrence of a thaw. Merely 
glancing at the rigid features of the face, in order to iden- 
tify the person, Roswell passed on, the chill feeling of every 
individual of his party now admonishing them all of the 
necessity of getting as soon as possible to some place where 
they could feel the influence of a fire. In ten minutes 
more, the whole were in the caverns of the ice, and, pres- 
ently, the cabin of the wreck was entered. Without turn- 
ing to the right hand or to the left, without looking for one 
of the inmates of the place, every man among the new- 
comers turned his attention instantly to getting the fire 
lighted. The camboose had been filled with wood, and it 
was evident that many efforts had been made to produce a 
blaze by those who had put it there. Splinters of pine 
had been inserted among the oak of the vessel, and nothing 
was wanting but the means of kindling. These, most 
fortunately for themselves, the party of Roswell had, and 
eagerly did they now have recourse to their use. 

There was not a man among the Oyster Ponders who 
did not, just at that moment, feel his whole being concen- 
trated in that one desire to obtain warmth. The cold had 
dowly, but surely, insinuated Itself among their garments, 
ind slight chills were now felt even by Roswell, whose 
frame had been most wonderfully sustained that night, 
through the force of moral feeling. Stimson was the in- 
dividual who was put forward at the camboose, others hold- 
ing the lamps, canvas saturated with oil, and some prepared 
paper. It was found to be perceptibly warmer within the 
cabin, with its doors closed, and the external coverings of 


THE SEA LIONS. 


399 


aails, etc., that had been made to exclude the air, than 
without ; nevertheless, when Roswell glanced at a ther- 
mometer that was hanging against the bulk-head, he saw 
that all the mercury was still in the ball ! 

The interest with which our party now watched the pro- 
ceedings of Stephen had much of that intensity that is 
known to attend any exhibition of vital importance. Life 
and death were, however, to be dependent on the issue; 
and the manner in which every eye was turned on the 
wood, and Stephen’s mode of dealing with it, denoted how 
completely the dread of freezing had got possession of the 
minds of even these robust and geuerous men. Roswell 
alone ventured, for a single moment, to look around the 
cabin. Three of the Vineyarders only were visible in it ; 
though it struck him that others lay in the berths, under 
piles of clothes. Of the three who were up, one was so 
near the lamp he held in his hand that its light illumined 
his face, and all that could be seen of a form enveloped in 
skins. This man sat leaning against a transom. His eyea 
were open, and glared on the party around the camboose ; 
the lips were slightly parted, and, at first, Roswell expected 
to hear him speak. The immovable features, rigid mus- 
cles, and wild expression of the eyeballs, however, soon 
told him the melancholy truth. The man was dead. The 
current of life had actually frozen at his heart. Shudder- 
ing, as much with horror as with a sharp chill that just 
then passed through his own stout frame, our young master 
turned anxiously to note the success of Stimson in getting 
the wood of the camboose in a blaze. 

Every one in the least accustomed to a very severe 
climate must have had frequent occasions to observe the 
reluctance with which all sorts of fuel burn in exceedingly 
cold weather. The billet of wood that shall blaze merrily, 
on a mild day, smolders and simmers, and seems indis- 
posed to give out any heat at all, with the thermometer at 
zero. In a word, all inanimate substances that contain the 
elements of caloric appear to sympathize with the prevail- 
ing state of the atmosphere, and to contribute to render 
that which is already too cold for comfort, even colder. 


400 


THE SEA LIONS. 


So it was now, notwithstanding the preparations that had 
been made. Baffled twice in his expectations of procuiing 
a blaze, Stephen stopped and took a drink of the hot coffee. 
As he swallowed the beverage, it struck him that it was 
fast losing its warmth. 

A considerable collection of canvas, saturated with oil, 
wa3 now put beneath the pile, in the midst of splinters of 
pine, and one of the lamps was forced into the centre of 
the combustibles. This expedient succeeded ; the frosts 
were slowly chased out of the kindling materials ; a sickly 
but gradually increasing flame strove through the kindling 
stuff and soon began to play among the billets of the oak, 
the only fuel that could be relied on for available heat. 
Still there was great danger that the lighter wood would 
all be consumed ere this main dependence could be aroused 
from its dull inactivity. Frost appeared to be in possession 
of the whole pile ; and it was expelled so slowly, clung to 
its dominion with so much power, as really to render the 
result doubtful for a moment or two. Fortunately, there 
was found a pair of bellows; and by means of a judicious 
use of this very useful implement, the oak wood was got 
into a bright blaze, and warmth began to be given out 
from the fire. Then came the shiverings and chills with 
which intense cold consents even to abandon the human 
frame ; and, by their number and force, Roswell was made 
to understand how near he and his companions had. been 
to death. As the young man saw the fire slowly kindle 
to a cheerful blaze, a glow of gratitude flowed towards 
his heart, and mentally he returned thanks to God. The 
cabin was so small, had been made so tight by artificial 
means, and the camboose was so large, that a sensible 
influence was produced on the temperature as soon as the 
wood bsgan to burn a little freely. As none of the heat 
was lost, the effect was not only apparent but most grateful. 
Roswell had looked into the vessels of the camboose while 
the fire was gathering head. One, the largest, was filled, 
or nearly so, with coffee frozen to a solid mass ! In the 
other, beef and pork had been set over to boil, and there 
the pieces now were., embedded in ice, and frozen to 


THE SEA LIONS. 


401 


blocks. It was when these two distinct masses of ice 
began to melt that it was known the fire was beginning to 
prevail, and hope revived in the bosoms of the Oyster 
Ponders. On taking another look at the thermometer, it 
was found that the mercury had so far expanded as to be 
leaving the ball. It soon after ascended so high as to de- 
note only forty degrees below zero ! 

Everything, even to life, depending on maintaining and 
increasing the power of the fire, the men now looked about 
them for more fuel. There was an ample stock in the 
cabin, however, the fire having become extinguished, not 
for want of wood, but in the usual way. It were needless 
to describe the manner in which those who stood around 
the stove watched the flames, or how profound was their 
satisfaction when they saw that Stimson had finally suc- 
ceeded. 

“ God be praised for this and for all his mercies ! ” ex- 
claimed Stephen, laying aside the bellows, at last. “ I can 
feel warmth from the fire, and that will save such of us as 
have not yet been taken away.” He then lifted the lids, 
and looked into the different vessels that were on. The 
ice was melting fast, and the steams of coffee became ap- 
parent to the senses. It was at this instant that a feeble 
voice was heard issuing from beneath the coverings of a 
berth. 

“ Gar’ner,” it said, imploringly, “ if you have any feelin’ 
for a fellow-creatur’ in distress, warm me up with one 
swallow of that coffee ! Oh, how pleasantly it smells, and 
how good it must be for the stomach! For three days 
have I tasted nothing — not even water.” 

This was Daggett, the long-tried sealer ; the man of iron 
nerves and golden longings ; he who had so lately concen* 
trated within himself all that was necessary to form a per- 
tinacious, resolute, and grasping seeker after gain. How 
changed, now, in all this! He asked for the means of 
preserving life, and thought no more of skins, and oils, and 
treasures on desert keys. 

Roswell was no sooner apprised of the situation of his 
brother-master than he bestowed the necessary care on his 
26 


402 


THE SEA LIONS. 


wants. Fortunately, the coffee brought by the Oyster 
Ponders, and which retained some of its original warmth, 
had been set before the fire, and was now as hot as the 
human stomach could bear it. Two or three swallows of 
this grateful fluid were given to Daggett, and his voice 
almost instantaneously showed the effect they produced. 

“ I’m in a bad way, Gar’ner,” resumed the Vineyard 
master ; “ I fear we ’re all in a bad -way, that are here. I 
held out ag’in the cold as long as human natur’ could bear 
it, but was forced to give in at last.” 

“ How many of your people still remain, Daggett ? tell 
us, that we may look for them, and attend to their wants.” 

“ I ’m afraid, Gar’ner, they ’ll never want anything more 
in this life ! The second mate and two of the hands were 
sitting in the cabin when I got into this berth, and I fear 
’t will be found that they’re dead. I urged them to turn 
in, too, as the berths were the only place where anything 
like warmth was to be found ; but drowsiness had come on 
’em, and, when that is the case, freezin’ soon follows.” 

“ The three men in the cabin are past our assistance, 
being actually frozen into logs ; but there must" be several 
more of you. I see the signs of two others in the berths 
— ah ! what do you say to that poor fellow, Stephen ? ” 

“ The spirit is still in the body, sir, but about to depart. 
If we can get him to swallow a little of the coffee, the 
angel of death may yet loosen his hold on him.” 

The coffee was got down this man’s .throat, and he in- 
stantly revived. He was a young man named Lee, and 
was one of the finest physical specimens of strength and 
youth in the whole crew. On examining his limbs, none 
were found absolutely frozen, though the circulation of the 
blood was so near being checked that another hour of the 
great cold which had reigned in the cabin, and which was 
slowly increasing in intensity, must have destroyed him. 
On applying a similar process to Daggett, Roswell was 
startled at the discovery he made. The feet, legs, and 
forearms of the unfortunate Vineyarder were all as stiff 
and rigid as icicles. In these particulars there could be 
no mistake, and men were immediately sent for snow, in 


THE SEA LIONS. 


403 


order to extract the frost by the only safe process known 
to the sealers. The dead bodies were carried from the 
cabin, and laid decently on the ice, outside, the increasing 
warmth within rendering the removal advisable. On glanc- 
ing again at the thermometer, now suspended in a remote 
part of the cabin, the mercury was found risen to two 
above zero. This was a very tolerable degree of cold, and 
the men began to lay aside some of their extra defenses 
against the weather, which would otherwise be of no serv- 
ice to them when exposed outside. 

The crew of the Vineyard Lion had consisted of fifteen 
souls, one less than that of her consort. Of these men, 
four had lost their lives between the wreck and the house, 
two on a former, and two on the present occasion. Three 
bodies were found sitting in the cabin, and two more were 
taken out of the berths dead. The captain, the cook, and 
Lee, added to these, made a dozen, leaving but three of 
the crew to be accounted for. When questioned on the 
subject, Lee said that one of those three had frozen to 
death in the caverns, several days before, and the other 
two had set out for the hut in the last snow-storm, unable 
to endure the cold at the wreck any longer. As these two 
men had not arrived at the house when Gardiner and his 
companions left it, they had perished, out of all doubt. 
Thus, of the fifteen human beings who had sailed together 
from Martha’s Vineyard, ready to encounter every hazard 
in order to secure wealth, or what in their estimation was 
wealth, but three remained ; and of these, two might be 
considered in a critical condition. Lee was .the only man 
of the entire crew who was sound and fit for service. 


404 


THE SEA LIONS. 


CHAPTER XX^II 

Bid him bow down to that which is above him, — 

The overruling Infinite, the Maker, 

Who made him not for worship, — let him kneel, 

.And we will kneel together. 

By row. 

When the bodies had been removed from the cabin, 
and the limbs of Daggett were covered with snow, Ros- 
well Gardiner took another look at the thermometer. It 
had risen already to twenty degrees above zero. This was 
absolutely warmth compared with the temperature from 
which the men had just escaped, and it was felt to be so 
in their persons. The fire, however, was not the only 
cause of this most acceptable change. One of the men 
who had been outside soon came back and reported a de- 
cided improvement in the weather. The wind, which had 
been coquetting with the northeast point of the compass 
for several hours, now blew steadily from that quarter. 
An hour later it was found, on examination, that a second 
thermometer, which was outside, actually indicated ten 
above zero ! This sudden and great change came alto- 
gether from the wind, which was now in the warm quarter. 
The men stripped themselves of most of their skins, 
and the fire was suffered to go down, though care was 
taken that it should not again be totally extinguished. 

We have little pleasure in exhibiting pictures of human 
suffering ; and shall say but little of the groans and pains 
that Daggett uttered and endured, while undergoing that 
most agonizing process of having the frost taken out of 
his system by cold applications. It was the only safe way 
of treating his case, however, and as he knew it, he bore 
his sufferings as well as man could bear them. Long ere 
the return of day he was released from his agony, and wa§ 


rilE SEA LIONS. 


405 


put back into liis berth, which had been comfortably ar- 
ranged for him, having the almost unheard-of luxury of 
sheets, with an additional mattress. 

As Stephen remarked, when the men were told to try 
and get a little sleep, “ There ’s plenty of berths empty, 
and each on us can have as many clothes and as warm a 
bed as he can ask for, now that so many have hastened 
away to their great account, as it might be, in the pride cf 
their youth and strength.” 

Activity, the responsibility of command, and the great 
necessity there had been for exertion, prevented Roswell 
from reflecting much on what had happened, until he lay 
down to catch a little sleep. Then, indeed, the whole of 
the past came over him, in one sombre, terrible picture, 
and he had the most lively perception of the dangers from 
which he had escaped, as well as of the mercy of God’s 
Providence. Surrounded by the dead, as it might be, and 
still uncertain of the fate of the living, his views of the 
past and future became much lessened in confidence and 
hope. The majesty and judgment of God assumed a higher 
place than common in his thoughts, while his estimate of 
himself was fast getting to be humble and searching. In 
the midst of all these changes of views and feelings, how- 
ever, there was one image unaltered in the young man’s 
imagination. Mary occupied the background of every 
picture, with her meek, gentle, but blooming countenance. 
If he thought of God, her eyes were elevated in prayer ; 
if the voyage home was in his mind, and the chances of 
success were calculated, her smiles and anxious watchful- 
ness stimulated him to adventure ; if arrived and safe, her 
downcast but joyful looks betrayed the modest happiness 
of her inmost heart. It was in the midst of some such 
pictures that Roswell now fell asleep. 

When the party turned out in the morning, a still more 
decided change had occurred in the weather. The wind 
had increased to a gale, bringing with it torrents of rain. 
Coming from the warm quarter, a thaw had s£t in with a 
character quite as decided as the previous frost. In that 
region, the weather is usually exaggerated in its features. 


406 


THE SEA LIONS. 


and the change from winter to spring is quite as sudden ai 
that from autumn to winter. We use the terms “ spring” 
and “ autumn ” out of complaisance to the usages of men ; 
but, in fact, these two seasons have scarcely any existence 
at all in the antarctic seas. The change, commonly, is 
from winter to summer, such as summer is, and from sum- 
mer back to winter. 

Notwithstanding the favorable appearances of things, 
when Roswell walked out into the open air next morning, 
he well knew that summer had not yet come. Many 
weeks must go by ere the ice could quit the bay, and even 
a boat could put to sea. There were considerations of 
prudence, therefore, that should not be neglected, con- 
nected with the continuance of the supplies and the means 
of subsistence. In one respect the party now on the isl- 
and had been gainers by the terrible losses it had sustamed 
in Daggett’s crew. The provisions of the two vessels 
might now, virtually, be appropriated to the crew of one ; 
and Roswell, when he came to reflect on the circumstances, 
saw that a Providential interference had probably saved 
the survivors from great privations, if not from absolute 
want. 

Still there was a thaw, and one of that decided charac- 
ter which marks a climate of great extremes. The snows 
on the mountain soon began to descend upon the plain, in 
foaming torrents ; and, increased by the tribute received 
from the last, the whole came tumbling over the cliffs in 
various places in rich water-falls. There was about a mile 
of rock that was one continuous cataract, the sheet being 
nearly unbroken for the whole distance. The effect of 
this deluge from the plain above was as startling as it was 
grand. All the snow along the rocky shore soon disap- 
peared ; and the fragments of ice began rapidly to dimin- 
ish in size, and to crumble. At first, Roswell felt much 
concern on account of the security of the wreck ; his orig- 
inal apprehension being that it would be w ashed away. 
This ground of fear was soon succeeded by another of 
scarcely less serious import — that of its being crushed by 
the enormous cakes of ice that made the cavercc in which 


THE SEA LIONS. 


407 


it lay, and which now began to settle and change their 
positions, as the water washed away their bases. At one 
time Roswell thought of setting the storm at defiance, and 
of carrying Daggett across to the house by means of the 
hand-barrow ; but when he came to look at the torrents of 
water that were crossing the rocks, so many raging rivu- 
lets, the idea was abandoned as impracticable. Another 
night was therefore passed in the midst pf the tempest. 

The northeast wind, the rain, and the thaw, were all at 
work in concert* when our adventurers came abroad to 
look upon the second day of their sojourn in the wreck. 
By this time the caverns were dripping with a thousand 
little streams, and every sign denoted a most rapid melting 
of the ice. On carrying the thermometer into the open air 
it stood 'at sixty-two ; and the men found it necessary to lay 
aside their second shirt, and all the extraordinary defenses 
of their attire. Nor was this all; the wind that crosses 
the salt water is known to have more than the usual influ- 
ence on the snows and ice ; and such was the effect now 
produced by it on Sealer’s Land. The snow, indeed, had 
mostly disappeared from all places but the drifts ; while 
the ice was much diminished in its size and outlines. So 
grateful was the change from the extreme cold that they 
had so lately endured, that the men thought nothing of the 
rain at all ; they went about in it just as if it did not stream 
down upon them in little torrents. Some of them clam- 
bered up the cliffs, and reached a point whence it was 
known that they could command a view of the house. The 
return of this party, which Roswell did not accompany, 
was waited for with a good deal of interest. When it got 
back, it brought a report that was deemed important in 
several particulars. The snow had gone from the plain, 
and from the mountain, with the exception of a few spots 
where there had been unusual accumulations of it. As re- 
spected the house, it was standing, and the snow had en- 
tirely disappeared from its vicinity. The men could be 
seen walking about on the bare rocks, and every symptom 
was that of settled spring. 

This was cheering news ; and the torrents having much 


408 


THE SEA LIONS. 


diminished in size, borne having disappeared altogether, 
Roswell set out for the cape, leaving the second mate in 
charge of the wreck. Lee, the young Vineyarder, who had 
been rescued from freezing by the timely arrival of our 
hero, accompanied the latter, having joined his fortunes to 
those of the Oyster Ponders. The two reached the house 
before dark, where they found Hazard and his companions 
in a good deal of concern touching the fate of the party 
that was out. A deep impression was made by the report 
of what had befallen the other crew ; and that night Ros- 
well read prayers to as attentive a congregation as was 
ever assembled around a domestic hearth. As for fire, 
none was now needed, except for culinary purposes, though 
all the preparations to meet cold weather were maintained, 
it being well known that a shift of wind might bring back 
the fury of the winter. 

The following morning it was clear, though the wind 
continued warm and balmy from the north. No such 
weather, indeed, had been felt by the sealers since they 
reached the group ; and the effect on them was highly 
cheering and enlivening. Before he had breakfasted, Ros- 
well was down in the cove, examining into the condition of 
his vessel, or what remained of her. A good deal of frozen 
snow still lay heaped on the mass, and he set the hands, at 
work to shovel it off. Before noon the craft was clear, and 
most of the snow was melted, it requiring little more than 
exposure to the air in order to get rid of it. 

As soon as the hulk was clear, Roswell directed his me» 
to take everything out of it, the remains of cargo, water- 
casks, and some frozen provisions, in order that it might 
float as light as possible. The ice was frozen close to 
every part of the vessel’s bottom to a depth of several feet, 
following her mold, a circumstance that would necessarily 
prevent her settling in the water below her timbers ; but, 
as there was no telling when this ice might beg n to recede 
by melting, it was deemed prudent to use this precaution. 
It was found that the experiment succeeded, the hulk act- 
ually rising, when relieved from the weight in it, no less 
than four inches. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


409 


A consultation was held that night between Gardiner, 
his officers, and the oldest of the seamen. The question 
presented was whether the party should attempt to quit the 
group in the boats, or whether they should build a little on 
the hulk, deck her over, and make use of this altered craft, 
to return to the northward. There was a good deal to be 
said on both sides. If the boats were used, the party might 
leave as soon as the weather became settled, and the season 
a little mo 3 advanced, by dragging the boats on sledges 
across the ice to the open water, which was supposed to 
be some ten or twenty miles to the northward, and a large 
amount of provisions might thus be saved. On the other 
hand, however, as it regarded the provisions, the boats 
would hold so little, that no great gain would be made by 
going early in them, and leaving a sufficient supply behind 
to keep all hands two or three months. This was a con- 
sideration that presented itself, and it had its weight in the 
decision. Then there was the chance of the winter’s re- 
turning, bringing with it the absolute necessity of using a 
great deal more fuel. This was a matter of life and death. 
Comparatively pleasant as the weather had become, there 
was no security for it so continuing. One entire spring 
month was before the sealers, and a shift of wind might 
convert the weather into a wintry temperature. Should 
such be the case, it might become indispensable to burn 
the very materials that would be required to build up and 
deck over the hulk. There were, therefore, many things 
to be taken into the account ; nor was the question settled 
without a great deal of debate and reflection. 

After discussing all these points, the decision was as 
f Hows. It was at least a month too soon to think of trust- 
ing tnemselves in that stormy ocean, on the high seas and 
in the open boats ; and this so much the more because 
nature, as if expressly to send back a reasonable amount of 
warm air into the polar regions, wtfli a view to preserve 
the distinction of the seasons, caused the wind to blow 
most of the time from the northward. As this month, in 
all prudence, must be passed on the island, it might as well 
be occupied with building upon the hulk, as in any other 


110 


THE b£A LIONS. 


occupation. Should the cold weather return, the materials 
would still be there, and might be burned, in the last ex- 
tremity, just as well, or even with greater facility, after 
being brought over to the cove, as if left where they then 
were, or at the wreck. Should the winter not return, the 
work done on the vessel would be so much gained, and 
they would be ready for an earlier start, when the ice 
should move. 

Ou this last plan the duty was commenced, very little 
interrupted by the weather. For quite three weeks the 
wind held from points favorable to the progress of spring, 
veerirtg from east to west, but not once getting any south- 
ing in it. Occasionally it blew in ga-les, sending down 
upon the group a swell that made great havoc with the 
outer edges of the field-ice. Every day or two a couple of 
hands were sent up the mountain to take a lookout, and 
to report the state of matters in the adjacent seas. The 
fleet of bergs had not yet come out of port, though it was 
in motion to the southward, like three-deckers dropping 
down to outer anchorages, in roadsteads and bays. As 
Roswell intended to be off before these formidable cruisers 
put to sea, their smallest movement or change was watched 
and noted. As for the field-ice, it was broken up, miles at 
a time, until there remained very little of it, with the ex- 
ception of the portion that was wedged in and jammed 
among the islands of the group. From some cause that 
could not be ascertained, the waves of the ocean, which 
came tumbling in before the northern gales, failed to roll 
home upon this ice, which lost its margin, now it was re- 
duced to the limits of the group, slowly and with great 
resistance. Some of the sealers ascribed this obstinacy in 
the bay-ice to its greater thickness, believing that the shal- 
lowness of the water had favored a frozen formation below 
that did not so much prevail off soundings. This theory 
may have been true, though there was quite as much against 
it as in its favor, for polar ice usually increases above and 
not from below. The sea is much warmer than the atmos- 
phere, in the cold months, and the ice is made by deposits 
of snow, moisture, and sleet on the surfaces of the fields 
and bergs. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


411 


In those three weeks, which carried forward the season 
to within ten days of summer, a great deal of useful work 
was done. Daggett was brought over to the house on a 
hand-barrow, for the second time, and made as comfortable 
as circumstances would allow. From the first, Roswell 
saw that his state was vei*y precarious, the frozen legs, in 
particular, being threatened with mortification. All the 
expedients known to a sealer’s materia medica were re- 
sorted to, in order to avert consequences so serious, -, vt 
without success. The circulation could not be restored, as 
nature required it to be done, and, failing of the support 
derived from a healthful condition of the vital current, the 
fatal symptoms slowly supervened. This change, however, 
was so gradual that it scarce affected the regular course of 
the duty. 

It was a work of great labor to transport the remaining 
timbers and plank of the wreck to the cove. Without the 
wheels, indeed, it may be questioned whether it could have 
been done at all, in a reasonable time. The breaking up 
of the schooner was, in itself, no trifling job, for fully one 
half of the frame remained to be pulled to pieces. In 
preparing the materials for use, again, a good deal of em- 
barrassment was experienced in consequence of the por- 
tions of the two vessels that were left being respectively 
their lower bodies all the upper works of each having been 
burned, with the exception of the after part of Daggett’s 
craft, which had been preserved on account of the cabin. 
This occasioned a good deal of trouble in moulding and 
fitting the new upper works on the hulk in the cove. Ros- 
well had no idea of rebuilding his schooner strictly in her 
old form and proportions ; he did not, indeed, possess the 
materials for such a reconstruction. His plan was, simply, 
to raise on the hulk as much as was necessary to render 
her safe and convenient, and then to get as good and se- 
cure a deck over all as circumstances would allow. 

Fortunately for the progress of the work, Lee, the 
Vineyard man, was a ship -carpenter, and his skill essen- 
tially surpassed that of Smith, who filled the same station 
on board the Oyster Pond craft. These two men were 


THE SEA LIONS. 


£12 

now of the greatest service ; for, though neither under- 
stood drafting, each was skilled in the use of tools, and 
had a certain readiness that enabled him to do a hundred 
things that he had never found it necessary to attempt on 
any former occasion. If the upper frame that was now 
got on the Sea Lion was not of faultless mold, it was 
securely fastened, and rendered the craft even stronger 
than it had been originally. Some regard was had to re- 
sisting the pressure of ice, and experience had taught all 
the sealers where the principal defenses against the effects 
of a “ nip ” ought to be placed. The lines were not per- 
fect, it is true, but this was of less moment, as the bottom 
of the craft, which alone had any material influence on her 
sailing, was just as it had come from the hands of the ar- 
tisan who had originally molded her. 

By the end of a fortnight the new top-timbers were all 
in their places, and secured, while a complete set of 
bends were brought to them, and were well bolted. The 
calking-irons were put in requisition as soon as a streak 
was on, the whole work advancing, as it might be, pari 
passu. Planks for the decks were much wanted, for, in 
the terrible strait for fuel which had caused the original 
assault on the schooner, this portion of the vessel had been 
the first burned, as of the most combustible materials. 
The quarter-deck of the Vineyard craft, luckily, was en- 
tire, and its planks so far answered an excellent purpose. 
They served to make a new quarter-deck for the repairs, 
but the whole of the main-deck and forecastle remained to 
be provided for. Materials were gleaned from different 
parts of the two vessels, until a reasonably convenient and 
a perfectly safe deck was laid over the whole craft, the 
coamings for the hatches being taken from Daggett’s 
schooner, which had not been broken up in those parts. 
It is scarcely necessary to say that the ice had early melted 
from the rocks of the coast. The caverns all disappeared 
within the first week of the thaw, the attitudes into which 
the cakos had been thrown greatly favoring the melting 
process, by exposing so much surface to the joint action of 
wind, rain, and sun. What was viewed as a favorable 


THE SEA LIONS. 


413 


augury, the seals began to reappear. There was a remote 
portion of the coast, from which the *ice had been driven 
by the winds around the northwest cape, that was already 
alive with them. Alas ! these animals no longer awak- 
ened cupidity in the breasts of the sealers. The last no 
longer thought of gain, but simply of saving their lives, 
and of restoring themselves to the humble places they had 
held in the world, previously to having come on this ill- 
fated voyage. 

This reappearance of the seals produced a deep impres- 
sion on Roswell Gardiner. His mind had been much in- 
clined of late to dwell more and more on religious subjects, 
aud his conversations with Stephen were still more fre- 
quent than formerly. Not that the boat-steerer could en- 
lighten him on the great subject, by any learned lore, for 
in this Stimson was quite deficient ; but his officer found 
encouragement in the depth and heartiness of his compan- 
ion’s faith, which seemed to be raised above all doubts and 
misgivings whatever. During the gloomiest moments of 
that fearful winter, Stephen had be-en uniformly confiding 
aud cheerful. Not once had he been seen to waver, though 
all around him were desponding and anticipating the worst. 
His heart was light exactly ha proportion as his faith was 
strong. 

“ We shall neither freeze nor starve,” he used to say, 
“ unless it be God’s will ; and, when it is his pleasure, de- 
pend on it, friends, it will be for our good.” As for Dag- 
gett, he had finally given up his hold on the wreck, and it 
seemed no longer to fill his thoughts. When he was told 
that the seals had come 'back, his eye brightened, and his 
nature betrayed some of its ardent longings. But it was 
no more than a gleaming of the former spirit of the man, 
now becoming dim under the darkness that was fast encir- 
cling all his views of this world. 

“ It ’s a pity, Gar’ner, that we have no craft ready for 
the work,” he said, under the first impulse of the intelli- 
gence. “ At this early time in the season, a large ship 
might be filled ! ” 

u We have other matters on our hands, Captain Dag- 


414 


THE SEA LIONS. 


gett,” was the answer. “ They must be looked to first* If 
we can get off the island at all and return safe to those 
who, I much fear, are now mourning us as dead, we shall 
have g eat reason to thank God.” 

“ A few skins would do no great harm, Gar’ner, even to 
a craft cut down and reduced.” 

“ We have more cargo now than we shall be able to 
take with us. Quite one half of all our skins must be left 
behind us, and all of the oil. The hold of the schooner is 
too shallow to carry enough of anything to make out a 
voyage. I shall ballast with water and provisions, and fill 
up all the spare room with the best of our skins. The 
’•est of the property must be abandoned.” 

“ Why abandoned ? Leave a hand or two to take care 
of it, and send a craft out to look for it, as soon as you 
get home. Leave me, Gar’ner, I am willing to stay.” 

Roswell thought that the poor man would be left, 
whether he wished to remain or not, for the symptoms 
that are known to be so fatal in cases like that of Dag- 
gett’s, were making themselves so apparent as to leave lit- 
tle doubt of the result. What rendered this display of 
the master-passion somewhat remarkable was the fact that 
our hero had, on several occasions, conversed with the in- 
valid, concealing no material feature of his case, and the 
latter had expressed his expectation of a fatal termination, 
if not an absolute willingness to die. Stimson had fre- 
quently prayed with Daggett, and Roswell had often read 
particular chapters of the Bible to him, at his own request, 
creating an impression that the Vineyarder was thinking 
more of his end than of any interests connected with this 
life. Such might have been, probably was , the case, until 
the seeming return of what had once been deemed good 
luck awakened old desires, and brought out traits of char- 
acter that were about to be lost in the near views of a 
future world. All this Roswell saw and noted, and the 
reflections produced by his own perilous condition, the cer- 
tain loss of so many companions, the probable death of 
Daggett, and the humble but impressive example and sym- 
pathy of Stimson, were such as would have delighted the 


THE SEA LIONS. 415 

tender spirit of Mary Pratt, could she have known of their 
existence. 

But the great consideration of the moment, the centre 
of all the hopes and fears of our sealers, was the rebuilding 
of the mutilated Sea Lion. Although the long thaw did 
so much for them, the reader is not to regard it as such a 
spell of warm weather as one enjoys in May within the 
temperate zone. There were no flowers, no signs of vege- 
tation, and whenever the wind ceased to blow smartly from 
the northward, there was frost. At two or three intervals 
cold snaps set in that looked seriously like a return to 
winter, and, at the end of the third week of pleasant 
weather mentioned, it began to blow a gale from the south- 
ward, to snow, and to freeze. The storm commenced 
about ten in the forenoon ; ere the sun went down, the 
days then being of great length, every passage around the 
dwelling was already blocked up with banks of snow 
Several times had the men asked permission to remove the 
sails from the house, to admit air and light ; but it was 
now found that the tent-like veranda they formed was of 
as much use as it had been at any time during the season. 
Without it, indeed, it would not have been possible for the 
people to quit their dwelling during three entire days. 
Everything like work was, of course, suspended during this 
tempest, which seriously menaced the unfortunate sealers 
with the necessity of again breaking up their schooner, now 
nearly completed, with a view again to keep themselves 
from freezing. The weather was not so intensely cold as 
it had been, continuously, for months during the past win- 
ter ; but coming, as it did, after so long a spell of what 
might be considered as a balmy atmosphere in that region, 
it found the people unbraced and little prepared for it. At 
no time was the thermometer lower than twenty degrees 
below zero ; this was near morning, after a sharp and sting- 
ing night ; nor was it for any succession of hours much be- 
low zero. But zero was now hard to bear, and fires, and 
good fires too, were absolutely necessary to keep the men 
from suffering, as well as from despondency. Perhaps the 
spectacle of Daggett, dying from the effects of frost before 


416 


THE SEA LIONS. 


their eyes, served to increase the uneasiness of the people, 
and to cause them to be less sparing of the fuel than per- 
sons in their situation ought to have been. It is certain 
that a report was brought to Roswell, in the height of the 
tempest, and when the thermometer was at the lowest, that 
there was not wood enough left from the plunder of the 
two vessels, exclusively of that which had been worked up 
in the repairs, to keep the fires going eight-and-forty hours 
longer! It was true, a little wood, intended to be used in 
the homeward passage, enough to last as far as Rio, possibly, 
had been used in stowing the hold ; and that might be got 
at first, if it ever ceased to snow. Without that addition 
to the stock in the house, it would not be within the limits 
of probability to suppose the people could hold out against 
the severity of such weather a great while longer. 

Every expedient that could be devised to save wood, and 
to obtain warmth from other sources, was resorted to, of 
course, by Roswell’s orders. Lamps were burned with great 
freedom ; not little vessels invented to give light, but such 
torches as one sees at the lighting up of a princely court- 
yard on the occasion of a f£te, in which wicks are made 
by the pound, and unctuous matter is used by the gallon. 
Old canvas and elephants’ oil supplied the materials ; and 
the spare camboose, which had been brought over to the 
house to be set up there, while the other galley was being 
placed on board, very well answered the purpose of a lamp. 
Some warmth was obtained by these means, but much more 
of a glaring and unpleasant light. 

It was during the height of this tempest that the soul of 
Daggett took its flight towards the place of departed spirits, 
in preparation for the hour when it was to be summoned 
before the judgment-seat of God. Previously to his death, 
the unfortunate Vineyarder held a frank and confidential 
discourse* with Roswell. As his last hour approached, his 
errors and mistakes became more distinctly apparent, as is 
usual with men, while his sins of omission seemed to crowd 
the vista of by-gone days. Then it was that the whole 
earth did not contain that which, in his dying eyes, would 
prove an equivalent for one hour passed in a sincere, de- 
vout, and humble service of the Deity ! * 


THE SEA LIONS. 


417 


“ I ’m afraid that I ’ve loved money most too well,” he 
said to Roswell, not an hour before he drew his last breath ; 
“ but I hope it was not so much for myself, as for others. 
A wife and children, Gar’ner, tie a man to ’arth in a most 
unaccountable manner. Sealers’ companions are used to 
hearing of misfortunes, and the Vineyard women know 
that few on ’em live to see a husband at their side in old 
age. Still, it is hard on a mother and wife to l’arn that 
her chosen friend has been cut off in the pride of his days 
and in a distant land. Poor Betsey ! It would have been 
better for us both had we been satisfied with the little we 
had ; for now the good woman will have to look to all 
matters for herself.” 

Daggett now remained silent for some time, though his 
lips moved, most probably in prayer. It was a melancholy 
sight to see a man in the vigor of his manhood, whose 
voice was strong, and whose heart was still beating with 
vigor and vitality, standing as it were on the brink of a 
precipice, down which all knew he was to be so speedily 
hurled. But the decree had gone forth, and no human 
skill could arrest it. Shortly after the confession and lam- 
entation we have recorded, the decay reached the vitals, 
and the machine of clay stopped. To avoid the unpleasant 
consequences of keeping the body in so warm a place, it 
was buried in the snow at a short distance from the house, 
within an hour after it had ceased to breathe. 

When Roswell Gardiner saw this man, who had so long 
adhered to him like a leech, in the pursuit of gold, laid a 
senseless corpse among the frozen flakes of the antarctic 
seas, he felt that a lively admonition of the vanity of the 
world was administered to himself. How little had he 
been able to foresee all that had happened, and how mis- 
taken had been his own calculations and hopes ! What, 
then, was that intellect of which he had been so proud, and 
what reason had he to rely on himself in those matters that 
lay equally beyond the cradle and the grave — that incom- 
prehensible past, and the unforeseen future towards which 
all those in existence were hastening ! Roswell had re- 
ceived many lessons in humility, the most useful of all the 
27 


418 


THE SEA LIONS. 


lessons that man can receive in connection with the relation 
that really exists between the Deity and himself. Often 
had he wondered, while reading the Bible Mary Pratt had 
put into his hand, at the stubborn manner in which the 
chosen people of God had returned to their “ idols,” and 
their “ groves,” and their “ high places ; ” but he was now 
made to understand that others still erred in this great 
particular, and that of all the idols men worship, that of 
*elf was perhaps the most objectionable. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


419 


CHAPTER XXVIII. 

Long swoln in drenching rains, seeds, germs, and oudi 
Start at the touch of vivifying beams. 

Moved by their secret force, the vital lymph 
Diffusive runs, and spreads o’er wood and field 
A flood of verdure. 

Wilcox. 

At length it came to be rumored among the sealers that 
the fires must be permitted to go out, or that the materials 
used for making the berths, and various other fixtures of 
the house, must be taken to supply the stove. It was when 
it got to be known that the party was reduced to this sad 
dilemma, that Roswell broke through the bank of snow 
that almost; covered the house, and got so far into the open 
air as to be able to form some estimate of the probable con- 
tinuance of the present cold weather. The thermometer, 
within the bank of snow, but outside of the building, then 
stood at twenty below zero ; but it was much colder in the 
unobstructed currents of as keen and biting a south wind 
as ever came howling across the vast fields of ice that cov 
ered the polar basin. The snow had long ceased, but not 
until an immense quantity had fallen ; nearly twice as 
much, Roswell and Hazard thought, as they had seen on 
the rocks at any time that winter. 

“ I see no signs of a change, Mr. Hazard,” Roswell re- 
marked, shivering with the intensity of the cold. “We 
had better go back into the house before we get chilled, 
for we have no fire now to go to, to warm ourselves. It 
is much warmer within doors than it is in the open air, fire 
or no fire.” 

“There are many reasons for that, Captain Gar’ner,” 
answered the mate. “ So many bodies in so small a space, 
the shelter from the wind and outer air, and the snow 


420 


THE SEA LIONS. 


banks, all help us. I think we shall find the thermometer 
in-doors at a pretty comfortable figure this morning.” 

On examining it, it was found to stand at only fifteen 
below zero, making a difference of five degrees in favor 
of the house, as compared with the sort of covered gallery 
under the tent, and probably of five more, as compared 
with the open air. 

On a consultation, it was decided that all hands should 
eat a hearty meal, remove most of their clothes, and get 
within the coverings of their berths, to see if it would not 
be possible to wear out the cold spell, in some tolerable 
comfort, beneath rugs and blankets. On the whole, it was 
thought that the berths might be made more serviceable 
by this expedient, than by putting their materials into the 
stoves. Accordingly, within an hour after Roswell and 
his mate had returned from their brief out-door excursion, 
the whole party was snugly bestowed under piles of rugs, 
clothes, sails, and whatever else might be used to retain 
the animal heat near the body, and exclude cold. In this 
manner, six-and-thirty hours were passed, not a man of 
them all having the courage to rise from his lair and en- 
counter the severity of the climate, now unrelieved by any- 
thing like a fire. 

Roswell had slept most of the time, during the last ten 
hours, and in this he was much like all around him. A 
general feeling of drowsiness had come over the men, and 
the legs and feet of many among them, notwithstanding 
the quantity of bed-clothes that were, in particular, piled 
on that part of their person, were sensitively alive to the 
cold. No one ever knew how low the thermometer went 
that fearful night ; but a sort of common consciousness pre- 
vailed that nothing the men had yet seen or felt equaled 
its chill horrors. The cold had got into the house, con- 
verting every article it contained into a mass of frost. The 
berths ceased to be warm, and the smallest exposure of a 
shoulder, hand, or ears, soon produced pain. The heads 
of very many of the party were affected, and breathing* be- 
came difficult and troubled. A numbness began to steal 
over the lower limbs; and this was the last unpleasant 


THE SEA LIONS. 


421 


sensation remembered by Roswell, when he fell into an- 
other short and disturbed slumber. The propensity to 
sleep was very general now, though many struggled against 
it, knowing it was the usual precursor of death by free*z- 
ing. 

Our hero never knew how long he slept in the last nap 
he took on that memorable occasion. When he awoke, 
he found a bright light blazing in the hut, and heard some 
one moving about the camboose. Then his thoughts re- 
verted to himself, and to the condition of his limbs. On 
trying to rub his feet together, he found them so nearly 
without sensation as to make the consciousness of their 
touching each other almost out of the question. Taking 
the alarm at once, he commenced a violent friction, until 
by slow degrees he could feel that the nearly stagnant 
blood was getting again into motion. So great had been 
Roswell’s alarm, and so intent his occupation, that he took 
no heed of the person who was busy at the camboose, until 
the man appeared at the side of his berth, bolding a tin 
pot in his hand. It was Stimson, up and dressed, without 
his skins, and seemingly in perfect preservation. 

“ Here ’s some hot coffee, Captain Gar’ner,” said the 
provident boat-steerer, “ and then turn out. The wind 
has shifted, by the marcy of God, and it has begun to 
rain. Now, I think we may have summer in ’arnest, as 
summer comes among these sealin’ islands.” 

Roswell took six or eight swallows of the coffee, which 
was smoking hot, and instantly felt the genial influence 
diffused over his whole frame. Sending Stephen to the 
other berths with this timely beverage, he now sat up in 
his berth, and rubbed his feet and legs with his hands. 
The exercise, friction, and hot coffee, soon brought him 
round ; and he sprang out of his berth, and was quickly 
dressed. Stimson had lighted a fire in the camboose, using 
the very last of the wood, and the warmth was beginning 
te diffuse itself through the building. But the change 
in the wind, and the consequent melioration of the tem- 
perature, probably alone saved the whole of the Oyster 
Pond crew from experiencing the dire fate of that of the 
Vineyard craft. 


422 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Stephen got man after man out of his berth, by cbsea 
of the steaming coffee ; and the blood being thus stim- 
ulated, by the aid of friction, everybody was soon up 
and stirring. It was found, on inquiry, that all three of 
the blacks had toes or ears frozen, and with them the 
usual application of snow became necessary ; but the tem- 
perature of the house soon got to be so high as to render 
the place quite comfortable. Warm food being deemed 
very essential, Stephen had put a supply of beans and 
pork into his coppers; and the frost having been ex- 
tracted from a quantity of the bread by soaking it in cold 
water, a hearty meal of good, hot, and most nourishing 
food was made by all hands. This set our sealers up, no 
more complaints of the frost being heard. 

It was, indeed, no longer very cold. The thermometer 
was up to twenty-six above zero in the house when Ros- 
well turned out ; and the cooking process, together with 
Stephen’s fires and the shift of wind, soon brought the 
mercury up to forty. This was a cheering temperature 
for those who had been breathing the polar air ; and the 
influence of the northeast gale continued to increase. The 
rain and thaw produced another deluge ; and the cliffs 
presented, for several hours, a sight that might have caused 
Niagara to hide her head in mortification. These sublime 
scenes are of frequent occurrence amid the solitudes of the 
earth ; the occasional phenomena of nature often surpass- 
ing in sublimity and beauty her rarest continued efforts. 

The succeeding day the rain ceased, and summer ap- 
peared to have come in reality. It is true that at midday 
the thermometer in the shade stood at only forty-eight ; 
but in the sun it actually rose to seventy. Let those who 
have ever experienced the extremes of heat and cold im- 
agine the delight with which our sealers moved about under 
such a sun ! All -excess of clothing was thrown aside ; 
and many of the men actually pursued their work in their 
shirt-sleeves. 

As the snow had vanished quite as suddenly as it came, 
everything and everybody was now in active motion. Not 
a man of the crew was disposed to run the risk of encount- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


423 


eting any more cold on SealerV Land. Roswell himself 
was of opinion that the late severe weather was the dying 
effort of the winter, and that no more cold was to be ex- 
pected ; and Stimson agreed with him in this notion. The 
sails were taken down from around the house, and those 
articles it was intended to carry away were transferred to 
the schooner as fast as the difficulties of the road would 
allow. While his mates were carrying on this duty, our 
young master took an early occasion to examine the state 
of matters generally on the island. With this view he 
ascended to the plain, and went half-way up the mountain, 
desiring to get a good look into the offing. 

It was soon ascertained that the recent deluge had swept 
all the ice and every trace of the dead into the sea. The 
body of Daggett had disappeared, with the snow-bank in 
which it had been buried ; and all the carcasses of the seals 
had been washed away. In a word, the rocks were as 
naked and as clean as if man’s foot had never passed over 
them. From the facts that skeletons of seals had been 
found strewed along the north shore, and the present void, 
Roswell was led to infer that the late storm had been one 
of unusual intensity, and most probably of a character to 
occur only at long intervals. 

But the state of the ice was the point of greatest in- 
terest. The schooner could now be got ready for sea in 
a week, and that easily ; but there she lay, imbedded in a 
.field of ice that still covered nearly the whole of the 
waters within the group. As Roswell stood on the cliffs 
which overlooked the cove, he calculated the distance it 
would be necessary to take the schooner through the ice 
by sawing and cutting, and that through a field known to 
be some four feet thick, at five good miles at least. So 
Herculean did this task appear to be, that he even thought 
of abandoning his vessel altogether, and of setting out .in 
the boats, as soon as the summer was fairly commenced. 
On reflection, however, this last plan was reserved as a 
dernier ressort , the danger of encountering the tempests 
of those seas in a whaleboat, without covering or fire, be- 
ing much too great to be thought of, so long as any rea- 
sonable alternative offered. 


424 


THE SEA LIONS. 


The bergs to the southward were in motion, and a large 
fleet of them was putting to sea, as it might be, coming in 
from those remote and then unknown regions in which 
they were formed. From the mountain, our hero counted 
at least a hundred, all regularly shaped, with tops like that 
of table-land, and with even, regular sides, and upright at- 
titudes. It was very desirable to get ahead of these new 
maritime Alps, for the ocean to the northward was un- 
usually clear of ice of all kinds, that lodged between the 
islands excepted. 

So long as it was safe to calculate on the regular changes 
of the seasons, Roswell knew that patience and vigilance 
would serve his 4 turn, by bringing everything round in its 
proper time and place. But it was by no means certain 
that it was a usual occurrence for the Great Bay to be 
crammed with field-ice, as had happened the past winter; 
if the actual state of the surrounding waters were an ex- 
ception instead of the rule. On examining the shores, 
however, it was found that the rain and melted snow had 
created a sort of margin, and that the strong winds which 
had been blowing, and which in fact were still blowing, 
had produced a gradually increasing attrition, until a space 
existed between the weather-side of the field and the rocks 
that was some thirty fathoms wide. This was an impor- 
tant discovery, and brought up a most grave question for 
decision. 

Owing to the shape of the surrounding land, it would 
not be possible for the ice to float out in a body, for two 
or three months to come ; or until so much had melted as 
to leave room for the field to pass the capes and head- 
lands. It never could have entered the bay for the same 
reason, but for the resistless power of a field that extended 
leagues out into the ocean, where, acted on jointly by wind 
and tide, it came down with a momentum that was resist- 
less ripping and tearing the edges of the field as if they 
had been so much freshly turned up mold. It was, then, 
a question how to get the schooner out of her present bed, 
and into clear water. 

The reader will probably remember that, on her first 


THE SEA LIONS. 


425 


arrival at the group, the Sea Lion had entered the Great 
Bay from the southward ; while, in her subsequent effort 
to get north, she had gone out by the opposite passage. 
Now, it occurred to Roswell that he might escape by the 
former of these routes more readily than by the latter, and 
for the following reasons : No field-ice had ever blocked 
up the southern passage, which was now quite clear, though 
the approach to it just then was choked by the manner in 
which the northeast gale that was still blowing pressed 
home against the rocks the field that so nearly filled th* 
bay A shift of wind, however, must soon come ; and 
when that change occurred, it was certain that this field 
would move in an opposite direction, leaving the margin 
of open water, that has already been mentioned, all along 
the rocks. The distance was considerable, it is true, — not 
less than fifteen miles, — and the whole of it was to be 
made quite close to sharp, angular rocks that would pene- 
trate the schooner’s sides almost as readily as an axe, in 
the event of a nip ; but this danger might be avoided b} 
foresight, and a timely attention to the necessities of the 
case. Seeing no more available plan to get the vessel out 
of her present duress, the mates came readily into this 
scheme, and preparations were made to carry it out. As 
the cove was so near the northeast end of Sealer’s Land, it 
may be well to explain tiiat the reason this same mode of 
proceeding could not be carried out in a northern direction 
was the breadth of the field seaward, and the danger of 
following the north shore when the solid ice did leave it, 
on account of the quantities of broken fragments that were 
tossing and churning in its front, far as the eye could reach 
from the cliffs themselves. 

The third day after the commencement of the thaw, the 
wind came round again from the southwest, blowing heav- 
ily. As was expected, this soon began to set the field in 
motion, driving it over towards the volcano, and at the 
same time northerly. About six in the morning, Hazard 
brought a report to Roswell that a margin of open water 
was beginning to form all along under the cliffs, while 
there was great danger that the channel which had been 


426 


THE SEA LIONS. 


cut from the schooner to the nearest point beneath the 
rocks, in readiness for this very contingency, might be 
closed by the pressure of the ice without on that within 
the cove. No time was to be lost, therefore, if it was in- 
tended to move the craft on this shift of wind. The dis- 
tance that had been sawed through to make the channel 
just named, did not exceed a hundred yards. The passage 
was not much wider than the schooner’s breadth ; and it 
will be easily understood that it was to the last degree im- 
portant to carry her through this strait as soon as possible. 
Although many useful articles were scattered about on the 
ice, and several remained to be brought over the rocks 
from the house, the order was given to get out lines, and 
to move the vessel at once ; the men set to work with hearty 
good will, another glimpse of home rising before their im- 
aginations ; and, in five minutes after Hazard had made his 
communication, the Sea Lien had gone six or eight times 
her length towards the cliffs. Then came the pinch ! Had 
not the ice been solid between the cape and the berth just 
before occupied by the schooner, she would have been 
hopelessly nipped by the closing of the artificial channel. 
As it was, she was caught, and her progress was arrested, 
but the field took a cant, in consequence of the resistance 
of the solid ice that filled the whole cove to the eastward 
of the channel; and, before aw damage was done, the 
latter began to open even faster than it had come together. 
The instant the craft was released the sealers manned their 
hauling lines again, and ran her up to the rocks with a 
hurrah ! The margin of water was just opening, but so 
prompt had been the movement of the men that it was not 
yet wide enough to permit the vessel to go any farther ; 
and it was found necessary to wait until the passage was 
sufficiently wide to enable her to move ahead. The inter- 
vening time was occupied in bringing to the craft the arti- 
cles left behind. 

By nine o’clock everything was on board ; the winding 
channel that followed the sinuosities of the coast could be 
traced far as the eye could see ; the lines were manned, 
and the word was again given to move. Roswell now felt 


THE SEA LIONS. 


427 


that he was engaged in much the most delicate of all his 
duties. The desperate run through the fleet of bergs, and 
the second attempt to get to sea, were not in Certain par- 
ticulars as hazardous as this. The field had been setting 
back and forth now, for several weeks ; the margin of clear 
water increasing by the attrition at each return to the 
rocks ; and it was known by observation that these changes 
often occurred at very short notices. Should the wind 
haul round with the sun, or one of the unaccountable cur- 
rents of those seas intervene before the southeast cape was 
reached, the schooner would probably be broken into splin- 
ters, or ground into powder, in the course of some two or 
three hours. It was all-important, therefore, to lose not a 
moment. 

Several times in the course of the first hour, the move- 
ment of the schooner was arrested by the want of sufficient 
room to pass between projecting points in the cliffs and the 
edge of the ice. On two of these occasions passages were 
cut with the saw, the movement of the field not answering 
to the impatience of the sealers. At the end of that most 
momentous hour, however, the craft had been hauled ahead 
a mile and a half, and had reached a curvature in the coast 
where the margin of open water was more than fifty fath- 
oms wide, and the tracking of the vessel became easy and 
rapid. By two o’clock the Sea Lion was at what might be 
called the bottom of the Great Bay, some three or four 
leagues from the cove, and at the place where the long low 
cape began to run out in a southeasterly direction. As the 
wind could now be felt over the rocks, the foretopsail was 
set, as well as the lower sails, the latter being mainly be- 
calmed, however, by the land ; when the people were all 
taken on board, the craft moving faster under her canvas 
than by means of the hauling lines. The wind was very 
fresh, and in half an hour more the southeast cape came 
,\n sight, close as were the navigators to the rocks. Ten 
minutes later, the Sea Lion was under reefed sails, stretch- 
ing off tc the southward and eastward, in perfectly clear 
water ! 

At first, Roswell Gardiner was disposed to rejoice, under 


123 


TIIE SEA LIONS. 


the impression that his greatest labor had been achieved. 
A better look at the state of things around him, however, 
taught the' disheartening lesson of humility, by demon- 
strating that they had in truth but just commenced. 

Although there was scarcely any field-ice to the south- 
ward of the group, and in its immediate neighborhood, 
there was a countless number of bergs. It is true, these 
floating mountains did not come very near the passage, foi 
the depth of water just there usually brought them up ere 
they could get into it; nevertheless, a large fleet of them 
was blockading the entire group, far as the eye could reach, 
looking east, west and south, or along the whole line of the 
southern coast. It was at first questionable whether, and 
soon after it became certain, that the schooner could never 
beat through such dangers. Had the wind been fair, the 
difficulty would have been insurmountable ; but ahead, and 
blowing a little gale, the matter was out of the question. 
Some other course must be adopted. 

There was a choice of alternatives. One was to go en- 
tirely round the whole group, passing to the eastward of 
the volcano, where no one of the party had ever been ; 
and the other was to follow the eastern margin of the 
bay, keeping inside of it, and trusting to finding some 
opening by which the schooner could force her way into 
clear water to the northward. After a very brief consul- 
tation with his mates, Roswell decided on attempting the 
last. 

As the course now to be steered was almost dead before 
the wind, the little craft, lightened of so much of her up- 
per works, almost flew through the water. The great 
source of apprehension felt by our young men in attempt- 
ing this new expedient was in the probability that the 
ield would drift home to the rocks in the northeast quar- 
ter of the bay, which, with a southwest wind, was necessa- 
rily a quarter to leeward. Should this prove to be the 
.'■ase, it might be found impossible to pass ahead, and the 
schooner would be caught in a cul-de-sac ; since it would 
not be in the power of her people to track her back again 
m the teeth of so strong a wind. Notwithstanding these 


THE SEA LIONS. 


429 


probabilities, on Roswell went ; for he saw plain enough 
that at such a moment almost anything was better than in- 
decision. 

The rate at which the little craft was flying before a 
fresh gale, in perfectly smooth water, soon put our sealers 
in a better condition to form closer estimates of their 
chances. The lookouts aloft, one of whom was Hazard, 
the first officer, sent down on deck constant reports of 
what they could see. 

“How does it look ahead, now, Mr. Hazard?” de- 
manded Roswell, about five in the afternoon, just as his 
schooner was coming close under the smoking sides of the 
volcano, which had always been an object of interest to 
him, though he had never found time to visit it before. 
“ Is there no danger of our touching the ground, close in 
as we are to this Island ? ” 

“ I think not, sir ; when I landed here, we kept the lead 
going the whole time, and we got two fathoms quite up to 
the shore. In my judgment, Captain Gar’ner, we may 
run down along this land as bold as lions.” 

“ And how does it look ahead ? I ’ve no wish to get 
jammed here, close aboard of a volcano, which may be 
choking us all with its smoke before we know where we 
are.” 

“ Not much danger of that, sir, with this wind. These 
volcanoes are nothin’ but playthings, a’ter all. The vapor 
is driving off towards the northeast — That was a crack, 
with a vengeance ! ” 

Just as Hazard was boasting of the innocuous character 
of a volcano, that near them fired a gun, as the men after- 
wards called it, casting into the air a large flight of cinders 
and stones, accompanied by a sharp flash of flame. All 
the lighter materials drove away to leeward, but the heav 
ier followed the law of projectiles, and scattered in all di- 
rections. Several stones of some size fell quite close to 
the schooner, and a few smaller actually came down on 
her decks. 

“ It will never do to stop here to boil our pot,” cried 
Roswell to the mate. “We must get away from this, Mr. 
Hazard, as fast as the good craft can travel ! ” 


430 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ Get away it is, sir. There is nothing very near ahead 
to stop us ; though it does look more toward the east cape 
as if the field was jammed in that quarter.” 

“ Keep all your eyes about you, sir ; and look out es- 
pecially for any opening among the smaller islands ahead. 
I am not without hope that the currents which run among 
them may give us a clear passage in that quarter.” 

These words explain precisely that which did actually 
occur. On went the schooner, almost brushing the base of 
the volcano, causing Roswell many a bound of the heart, 
when he fancied she must strike ; but she went clear. All 
this time, it was crack, crack, crack, from the crater, rum- 
bling sounds and heavy explosions ; the last attended by 
flames, and smoke of a pitchy darkness. A dozen times 
the Sea Lion had very narrow escapes when nearest to the 
danger, stones of a weight to pass through her decks and 
bottom falling even on the ice outside of her ; but that hand 
which' had so benevolently stayed various other evils was 
stretched forth to save, and nothing touched the schooner 
of a size to do any injury. These escapes made a deep 
impression on Roswell. Until the past winter he had been 
accustomed to look upon things and events as matters of 
course. This vacant indifference, so common to men in 
prosperity, was extended even to the sublimest exhibition 
of the Almighty power ; our hero seeing nothing in the 
firmament of heaven, of a clear night, but the twinkling 
lights that seemed to him to be placed there merely to gar- 
nish and illumine the darkness of this globe. Now, how 
differently did he look upon natural objects, and their 
origin ! If it were only an . insect, his mind presented its 
wonderful mechanism, its beauty, its uses. No star seemed 
less than what science has taught us that it is ; and the 
power of the Dread Being who had created all, who gov- 
erned all, and who was judge of all, became an insepara- 
ble subject of contemplation, as he looked upon the least 
of his works. Feelings thus softened and tempered by 
humility easily led their subject to the reception of those 
leading articles of the Christian faith which have been 
consecrated by the belief of the church catholic since the 


THE SEA LIONS. 


431 


ages of miraculous guidance, and which are now venerable 
by time. Bold and presuming is he who fancies that his 
intellect can rectify errors of this magnitude and antiquity, 
and that the church of God has been permitted to wallow 
on in a most fatal idolatry for centuries, to be extricated 
by the pretending syllogisms of his one-sided and narrow 
philosophy ! 

The people of the Sea Lion were less affected by what 
they saw than their young commander. Their hearts were 
light with the prospect of a speedy release from the hard- 
ships and dangers they had undergone ; and, at each ex- 
plosion of the volcano, as soon as out of reach of the fall- 
ing stones, they laughed, and asserted that the mountain 
was firing a salute in honor of their departure. Such is 
the difference between men whose hearts and spirits have 
submitted to the law of faith, and those who live on in the 
recklessness of the passing events of life ! 

The schooner was racing past a rocky islet, beginning 
to haul more on a wind, as she made the circuit of the 
bay, just as Hazard came to the conclusion that the field 
had drifted home on the outer island of the group, and 
that it would be impossible to pass into clear water by 
going on. Turning his head in quest of some bay, oi 
other secure place in which the craft might wait for a 
favorable change, he saw a narrow opening to leeward of 
the islet he had passed but a minute before ; and, so far 
as he could perceive, one that led directly out to sea. 

It was too late to keep away for the entrance of the 
passage, the ice being too close at hand to leeward ; but 
most fortunately there was room to tack. A call to Ros- 
well soon caused the schooner to be close on a wind ; down 
went her helm, and round she came like a top. Sail was 
shortened in stays, and by the time the little craft was 
ready to fall off for the passage, she had nothing on her 
but a foretopsail, jib, and a close-reefed mainsail. Under 
this canvas she glided along, almost brushing the rocks 
of the islet, but without touching. In twenty minutes 
more she was clear of the group altogether, and in open 
water ! 


432 


THE SEA LIONS. 


That night some embarrassment was encountered from 
broken field-ice, of which the ocean was pretty full ; but 
by exercising great vigilance, no serious thump occurred. 
Fortunately the period of darkness was quite short, the 
twilight being of great length both mornings and even- 
ings ; and the reappearance of the sun cast a cheerful glow 
on the face of the troubled waters. 

The wind held at southwest for three days, blowing 
heavily the whole time. By the second night-fall the sea 
was clear of ice, and everything was carried on the 
schooner that she could bear. About nine o’clock on the 
morning of the fourth day out, a speck was seen rising 
above the ragged outline of the rolling waves ; and each 
minute it became higher and more distinct. An hour or 
two later the Sea Lion was staggering along before a 
westerly gale, with the Hermit of Cape Horn on her lar- 
board beam, distant three leagues. How many trying 
scenes and bitter moments crowded on the mind of young 
Roswell Gardiner, as he recalled all that had passed in the 
ten months which intervened since he had come out from 
behind the shelter of those wild rocks ! Stormy as was 
that sea, and terrible as was its name among mariners, 
coming, as he did, from one still more stormy and terrible, 
he now regarded it as a sort of place of refuge. A win- 
ter there, he well knew, would be no trifling undertaking ; 
but he had just passed a winter in a region where even 
fuel was not to be found, unless carried there. Twenty 
days later the Sea Lion sailed again from Rio, having sold 
all the sea-elephant oil that remained, and bought stores 
of which, by this time, the vessel was much in want. Most 
of the portions of the provisions that were left had been 
damaged by the thawing process ; and food was getting to 
be absolutely necessary to her people, when the schooner 
went again into the noble harbor of the capital of Brazil. 
Then succeeded the lassitude and calms that reign about 
the imaginary line that marks the circuit of the earth, at 
that point which is ever central as regards the sun, and 
where the days and nights are always equal. No inclina- 
tion of the earth’s axis to the plane of its orbit affected 


THE SEA LIONS. 


433 


the climate there, which knew not the distinctions of sum- 
mer and winter ; or which, if they did exist at all, were 
so faintly marked as to be nearly imperceptible. 

Twenty days later the schooner was standing among 
some low sandy keys, under short canvas, and in the south- 
east trades. By her movements an anchorage was sought ; 
and one was found at last, where the craft was brought up, 
boats were hoisted out, and Roswell Gardiner landed. 


434 


THE SEA LIONS. 


CHAPTER XXIX. 

If every ducat iu six thousand ducats 
Were in six parts, and every part a ducat, 

I would not draw them ; I would have my bond. 

Shakespeare. 

The earth had not stopped in its swift race round the 
sun at Oyster Pond, while all these events were in the 
course of occurrence in the antarctic seas. The summer 
had passed, that summer which was to have brought back 
the sealers ; and autumn had come to chill the hopes as 
well as the body. Winter did not bring any change. 
Nothing was heard of Roswell and his companions, nor 
could anything have been heard of them short of the inter- 
vention of a miracle. 

Mary Pratt no longer mentioned Roswell in her prayers. 
She fully believed him to be dead ; and her puritanical 
creed taught her that this, the sweetest and most endear- 
ing of all the rites of Christianity, was allied to a belief 
that it was sacrilege to entertain. We pretend not to any 
distinct impressions on this subject ourselves, beyond a 
sturdy protestant disinclination to put any faith in the 
abuses of purgatory at least ; but, most devoutly do we 
wish that such petitions could have the efficacy that so large 
a portion of the Christian world impute to them. But 
Mary Pratt, so much better than we can lay any claim to 
be in all essentials, was less liberal than ourselves on this 
great point of doctrine. Roswell Gardiner’s name now 
never passed her lips in prayer, therefore ; though scarce 
a minute went by without his manly person being present 
to her imagination. He still lived in her heart, a shrine 
from which she made no effort to expel him. 

As for the deacon, age, disease, and distress of mind, had 
brought him to his last hours. The passions which had so 


THE SEA LIONS. 


435 


engrossed him when in health now turned upon his nature, 
and preyed upon his vitals, like an ill-omened bird. It is 
more than probable that he would have lived some months, 
possibly some years longer, had not the evil spirit of covet- 
ousness conspired to heighten the malady that wasted his 
physical frame. As it was, the sands of life were running 
low; and the skillful Dr. Sage, himself, had admitted to 
Mary the improbability that her uncle and protector could 
long survive. 

It is wonderful how the interest in a rich man suddenly 
revives among his relatives and possible heirs, as his last 
hour draws near. Deacon Pratt was known to be wealthy 
in a small way ; was thought to possess his thirty or forty 
thousand dollars, which was regarded as wealth among the 
east-enders thirty years since ; and every human being in 
Old Suffolk, whether of its overwhelming majority or of iti 
more select and wiser minority, who could by legal possi- 
bility claim any right to be remembered by the dying man, 
crowded around his bedside. At that moment, Mary 
Pratt, who had so long nursed his diseases and mitigated 
his sufferings, was compelled to appear as a very insignifi- 
cant and secondary person. Others who stood in the same 
degree of consanguinity to the dying man, and two, a 
brother and sister, who were even one degree closer, had 
their claims, and were by no means disposed to suffer them 
to be forgotten. Gladly would poor Mary have prayed by 
her uncle’s bedside ; but Parson Whittle had assumed this 
solemn duty, it being deemed proper that one who had so 
long filled the office of deacon should depart with a proper 
attention to the usages of his meeting. Some of the rela- 
tives who had lately appeared, and who were not so con- 
versant with the state of things between the deacon and 
his divine, complained among themselves that the latter 
made too many ill-timed allusions to the pecuniary wants 
of the congregation ; and that he had, in particular, al- 
most as much as asked the deacon to make a legacy that 
would enable those who were to stay behind to paint the 
meeting-house, erect a new horse-shed, purchase some im- 
proved stoves, and reseat the body of the building. These 


436 


THE SEA LIONS. 


modest requests, it was whispered, — for all passed in whis- 
pers then, — would consume not less than a thousand dol- 
lars of the deacon’s hard earnings ; and the thing was 
mentioned as a wrong done him who was about to descend 
into the grave, where nought of earth could avail him in 
any way. 

Close was the siege that was laid to Deacon Pratt, dur- 
ing the last week of his life. Many were the hints given 
of the necessity of his making a will, though the brother 
and sister, estimating their rights as the law established 
them, said but little on the subject, and that little was 
rather against the propriety of annoying a man, in their 
brother’s condition, with business of so perplexing a nature. 
The fact that these important personages set their faces 
against the scheme had due weight, and most of the relatives 
began to calculate the probable amount of their respective 
shares under the law of distribution, as it stood in that day. 
This excellent and surpassingly wise community of New 
York had not then reached the pass of exceeding liberality 
towards which it is now so rapidly tending. In that day, 
the debtor was not yet thought of, as the creditor’s next 
heir, and that plausible and impracticable desire of a false 
philanthropy, . which is termed the Homestead Exemption 
Law — impracticable as to anything like a just and equita- 
ble exemption of equal amount in all cases of indebtedness 
— was not yet dreamed of. New York was then a sound 
and healthful community; making its mistakes, doubtless, 
as men ever will err ; but the control of things had not 
yet passed into the hands of sheer political empirics, 
whose ignorance and quackery were stimulated by the low- 
est passion for majorities. Among other things that were 
then respected were wills ; but it was not known to a 
single individual, among all those who thronged the dwell- 
ing of Deacon Pratt, that the dying man had ever mus- 
tered the self-command necessary to make such an instru- 
ment- He was free to act, but did not choose to avail 
himself of his freedom. Had he survived a few years, he 
would have found himself in the enjoyment of a liberty so 
gublimated, that he could not lease or rent a farm, or col- 


THE SEA LIONS. 437 

lect a common debt, without coming under the harrow of 
the tiller of the political soil. 

The season had advanced to the early part of April, and 
that is usually a soft and balmy month on the sea-shore, 
though liable to considerable and sudden changes of tem- 
perature. On the day to which we now desire to transfer 
the scene, the windows of the deacon’s bedroon^were open, 
and the soft south wind fanned his hollow and pallid cheek. 
Death was near, though the principle of life struggled hard 
with the King of Terrors. It was now that that bewil- 
dered and Pharisaical faith which had so long held this 
professor of religion in a bondage even more oppressive 
than open and announced sins, most felt the insufficiency 
of the creed in which he had rather been speculating than 
trusting all his life, to render the passing hour composed 
and secure. There had always been too much of self in 
Deacon Pratt’s moral temperament to render his belief as 
humble and devout as it should be. It availed him not a 
hair, now, that he was a deacon, or that he had made long 
prayers in the market-places, where men could see him, or 
that he had done so much, as he was wont to proclaim, for 
example’s sake. All had not sufficed to cleanse his heart 
of worldly-mindedness, and he now groped about him, in 
the darkness of a faith obscured, for the true light that was 
to illumine his path to another world. 

The doctor had ordered the room cleared of all, but two 
or three of the dying man’s nearest relatives. Among 
these last, however, was the gentle and tender-hearted Mary, 
who loved to be near her- uncle, in this his greatest need. 
She no longer thought of his covetousness, of his griping 
usury, of his living so much for self and so little for God. 
While hovering about the bed, a message reached her that 
Baiting Joe wished to see her, in the passage that led to 
the bedroom. She went to this old fisherman, and found 
him standing near a window that looked towards the east, 
and which consequently faced the waters of Gardiner’s 
Bay. 

“ There she is, Miss Mary,” said Joe, pointing out of 
the window, his whole face in a glow between joy and 


438 


THE SEA LIONS. 


whiskey. “It should be told to the deacon at once, that 
his last hours might be happier than some that he has 
passed lately. That ’s she — though, at first, I did not 
know her.” 

Mary saw a vessel standing in towards Oyster Pond, and 
her familiarity with objects of that nature was such as to 
cell her at once that it was a schooner ; but so completely 
had she given up the Sea Lion, that it did not occur to her 
that this could be the long-missing craft.' 

“ At what are you pointing, Joe ? ” the wondering girl 
asked, with perfect innocence. 

“ At that craft — at the Sea Lion of Sterling, which has 
been so long set down as missing, but which has turned 
up, just as her owner is about to cast off from this ’arth, 
altogether.” 

Joe might have talked for an hour : he did chatter away 
for two or three minutes, with his head and half his body 
out of the window, uninterrupted by Mary, who sank into 
a chair, to prevent falling on the floor. At length the dear 
girl commanded herself, and spoke. 

“ You cannot possibly be certain, Joe,” she said ; “ that 
schooner does not look to me like the Sea Lion.” 

“ Nor to me, in some things, while in other some she 
does. Her upper works seem strangely out of shape, and 
there ’s precious little on ’em. But no other fore-taW-sail 
schooner ever comes in this-a-way, and I know of none 
likely to do it. Ay, by Jupiter, there goes the very blue 
peter I helped to make with my own hands, and it was 
agreed to set it, as the deacon’s signal. There ’s no mis- 
take, now ! ” 

Joe might have talked half an hour longer without any 
fear of interruption, for Mary had vanished to her own 
room, leaving him with his head and body still out of the 
window, making his strictures and conjectures for some 
time longer ; while the person to whom he fancied he was 
speaking, was, in truth, on her knees, rendering thanks to 
God ! An hour later, all doubt was removed, the schooner 
coming in between Oyster Pond and Shelter Island, and 
making the best of her way to the well-known wharf. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


439 


“ Is n’t it wonderful, Mary,” exclaimed the deacon, in a 
hollow voice, it is true, but with an animation and force 
that did not appear to have any immediate connection with 
death ; “ is n’t it wonderful that Gar’ner should come back, 
after all ! If he has only done his duty by me, this will 
be the greatest ventur’ of my whole life ; it will make the 
evening of my days comfortable. I hope I ’ve always been 
grateful for blessings, and I ’m sure I ’m grateful, from the 
bottom of my heart, for this. Give me prosperity, and I ’m 
not apt to forget it. They ’ve been asking me to make a 
will, but I told ’em I was too poor to think of any such 
thing ; and, now my schooner has got back, I s’pose I shall 
get more hints of the same sort. Should anything happen 
to me, Mary, you can bring out the sealed paper I gave 
you to keep, and that must satisfy ’em all. You ’ll remem- 
ber, it is addressed to Gar’ner. There is n’t much in it, 
and it won’t be much thought of, I fancy ; but, such as it 
is, ’t is the last instrument I sign, unless I get better. To 
think of Gar’ner’s coming back, after all ! It has put new 
life in me, and I shall be about, ag’in, in a week, if he has 
only not forgotten the key, and the hidden treasure ! ” 
Mary Pratt’s heart had not been so light for many a 
weary day, but it grieved her to be a witness of this linger- 
ing longing after the things of the world. She knew that 
not •’only her uncle’s days, but that his very hours, were 
numbered ; and that, notwithstanding this momentary flick- 
ering of the lamp, in consequence of fresh oil being poured 
into it, the wick was nearly consumed, and that it must 
shortly go out, let Roswell’s success be what it might. The 
news of the sudden and unlooked-for return of a vessel so 
long believed to be lost, spread like wildfire over the whole 
point, and greatly did it increase the interest of the rela- 
tives in the condition of the dying man. If he was a sub- 
ject of great concern before, doubly did he become so now. 
A vessel freighted with furs would have caused much 
excitement of itself ; but, by some means or other, the dea- 
con’s great secret of the buried treasure had leaked out, 
most probably by means of some of his lamentations during 
his illness, and, though but imperfectly known, it added 


440 


THE SEA LIONS. 


largely to tlie expectations connected with the unlooked- 
for return of the schooner. In short, it would not have 
been easy to devise a circumstance that should serve to in- 
crease the liveliness of feeling thjt, just then, prevailed on 
the subject of Deacon Pratt and his assets, than the arrival 
of the Sea Lion at that precise moment. 

And arrive she did, that tempest-tossed, crippled, ice- 
bound, and half-burned little craft, after roaming over an 
extent of ocean that would have made up half a dozen or- 
dinary sea voyages. It was, in truth, the schooner so well 
known to the reader, that was now settling away her main- 
sail and jib, as she kept off, under her foretopsail alone, 
towards the wharf, on which every human being who could, 
with any show of propriety, be there at such a moment, 
was now collected, in a curious and excited crowd. Alto- 
gether, including boys and females, there must have been 
not less than a hundred persons on that wharf ; and among 
them were most of the anxious relatives who were in at- 
tendance on the vessel’s owner, in his last hours. By a 
transition that was natural enough, perhaps, under the 
circumstances, they had transferred their interest in the 
deacon to this schooner, which they looked upon as an in- 
animate portion of an investment that would soon have lit- 
tle that was animate about it. 

Baiting Joe was a sort of oracle, in such circumstances. 
He had passed his youth at sea, having often doubled the 
Horn, and was known to possess a very respectable amount 
of knowledge on the subject of vessels of all sorts and sizes, 
rig and qualities. He was now consulted by all who could 
get near him, as a matter of course, and his opinions were 
received as res adjudicata , as the lawyers have it. 

“ That ’s the boat,” said Joe, affecting to call the Sea 
Lion by a diminutive, as a proof of regard ; “ yes, that ’s 
the craft, herself ; but she is wonderfully deep in the water ! 
I never seed a schooner of her tonnage, come in from a 
v’y’ge, with her scuppers so near awash. Don’t you think, 
Jim, there must be suthin’ heavier than skins, in her hold, 
to bring her down so low in the water ? ” 

Jim was another loafer, who lived by taking clams, oys- 


THE SEA LIONS. 


441 


ters, fish, and the other treasures of the surrounding bays. 
He was by no means as high authority as Baiting Joe ; 
still he was always authority on a wharf. 

“ I never seed the like on ’t,” answered Jim. “ That 
schooner must ha’ made most of her passage under water. 
She ’s as deep as one of our coasters cornin’ in with a load 
o’ brick ! ” 

She ’s deep ; but not as deep as a craft I once made a 
cruise in. I was aboard of the first of Uncle Sam’s gun- 
boats that crossed the pond to Gibraltar. When we got 
in, it made the Mediterranean stare, I can tell you ! We 
had furrin officers aboard us, the whull time, lookin’ about, 
and wonderin’, as they called it, if we was n’t amphibbies.” 

“ What ’s that ? ” demanded Jim, rather hastily. “ There ’a 
no sich rope in the ship.” 

u I know that well enough ; but an amphibby, as I un- 
derstand it, is a new sort of whale, that comes up to breathe, 
like all of that family, as old Dr. Mitchell of Cow Neck 
calls the critturs. So the furrin officers thought we must 
be of the amphibby family, to live so much under water, 
as it seemed to them. It was wet work, I can tell you, 
boys ; I don’t think I got a good breath more than once an 
hour, the whull of the first day we was out. One of the 
furrin officers asked our captain how the gunboat steered. 
He was n’t a captain, at all — only a master, you see, and we 
all called him Jumpin’ Billy. So Jumpin’ Billy says, ‘ Don’t 
know, sir.’ ‘ What ! crossed the Atlantic in her, and don’t 
know how your craft steers ! ’ says the furrin officer, says 
he, — and well he might, Jim, since nothin’ that ever lived 
could go from Norfolk to Gibraltar, without some atten- 
tion to the helm — but Jumpin’ Billy had another story to 
tell. ‘ No, sir ; don’t know,’ he answered. ‘ You see, sir, 
a nor-wester took us right aft, as we cleared the capes, 
and down she dove, with her nose under and her starn out, 
and she come across without having a chance to try the 
rudder.’ ” 

This story, which Joe had told at least a hundred times 
before, and which, by the way, is said to be true, produced 
the usual admiration, especially among the crowd of lega- 


442 


THE SEA LIONS. 


tees-expectant, to most of whom it was quite new. When 
the laugh went out, which it soon did of itself, Joe pur- 
sued a subject that was of more interest to most of his 
auditors, or rather to the principal personages among them. 

“ Skins never brought a craft so low, that you may be 
sartain of ! ” he resumed. “ I ’ve seed all sorts of vessels 
stowed, but a hundred press-screws could n’t cram in furs 
enough to bring a craft so low ! To my eye, Jim, there ’s 
suthin’ unnat’ral about that schooner, a’ter all.” 

The study is scarce worthy of a diploma, but we will 
take this occasion to say, for the benefit of certain foreign 
writers, principally of the female sex, who fancy they 
represent Americanisms, that the vulgar of the great re- 
public, and it is admitted there are enough of the class, 
never say “ summat ” or “ somethink,” which are low Eng- 
lish, but not low American dialect. The in-and-in Yankee 
says “ suthin’.” In a hundred other words have these 
ambitious ladies done injustice to our vulgar, who are not 
vulgar, according to the laws of Cockayne, in the smallest 
degree. “ The Broadway,” for instance, is no more used 
by an American than “ the Congress,” or “ the United 
States of North America.” 

“ Perhaps,” answered Jim, “ ’t is n’t the Sea Lion, a’ter 
all. There ’s a family look about all the craft some men 
build, and this may be a sort of relation of our missin’ 
schooner.” 

“ I ’ll not answer for the craft, though that ’s her blue 
peter, and them ’s her mast-heads, and I turned in that 
taw-sail halyard-block with my own hands. I ’ll tell you 
what, Jim, there ’s been a wrack, or a nip, up yonder, 
among the ice, and this schooner has been built anew out 
of that there schooner. You see if it don’t turn out as I 
tell you. Ay, and there ’s Captain Gar’ner, himself, alive 
and well, just cornin’ forrard.” 

A little girl started with this news, and was soon pour- 
ing it into the willing ears and open heart of the weeping 
and grateful Mary. An hour later, Roswell held the 
latter in his arms ; for at such a moment, it was not pos- 
sible for the most scrupulous of the sex to affect coldness 


THE SEA LIONS. 


443 


and reserve, where there was so much real tenderness and 
love. While folding Mary to his heart, Roswell whispered 
in her ears the blessed words that announced his own 
humble submission to the faith which accepted Christ as 
the Son of God. Too well did the gentle and ingenuous 
girl understand the sincerity and frankness of her lover’s 
nature, to doubt what he said, or in any manner to dis- 
trust the motive. That moment was the happiest of her 
short and innocent life ! 

But the welcome tidings had reached the deacon, and 
ere Roswell had an opportunity of making any other ex- 
planations but those which assured Mary that he had come 
back all that she wished him to be, both of them were 
summoned to the bedside of the dying man. The effect 
of the excitement on the deacon was so very great as al- 
most to persuade the expectant legatees that their visit 
was premature, and that they might return home, to re- 
new it at some future day. It is painful to find it our 
duty to draw sketches that shall contain such pictures of 
human nature ; but with what justice could we represent 
the loathsome likeness of covetousness, hovering over a 
grave, and omit the resemblances of those who surrounded 
it ? Mary Pratt, alone, of all that extensive family con- 
nection, felt and thought as Christianity and womanly 
affection and reason dictated. All the rest saw nothing 
but the possessor of a considerable property, who was 
about to depart for that unknown world into which noth- 
ing could be taken from this but the divine and abused 
spirit which had been fashioned in the likeness of God. 

“ Welcome, Gar’ner — welcome home, ag’in ! ” exclaimed 
the deacon, so heartily as quite to deceive the young man 
as to the real condition of his owner ; a mistake that was, 
perhaps, a little unfortunate, as it induced him to be more 
frank than might otherwise have been the case. “ I could 
not find it in my heart to give you up, and have all along 
believed that we should yet have good news from you. 
The Gar’ners are a reliable family, and that was one rea- 
son why I chose you to command my schooner. Them 
Daggetts are a torment, but we never should have known 


444 


THE SEA LIONS. 


anything about the islands, or the key, had n’t it been for 
one on ’em ! ” 

As the deacon stopped to breathe, Mary turned away 
from the bed, grieved at heart to see the longings of the 
world thus clinging to the spirit of one who probably had 
not another hour to live. The glazed but animated eye, 
a cheek which resembled a faded leaf of the maple laid on 
a cold and whitish stone, and lips that had already begun 
to recede from the teeth, made a sad, sad picture, truly, 
to look upon at such a moment ; yet, of all present, Mary 
Pratt alone felt the fullness of the incongruity, and alone 
bethought her of the unreasonableness of encouraging feel- 
ings like those which were now uppermost in the deacon’s 
breast. Even minister Whittle had a curiosity to know 
how much was added to the sum total of Deacon Pratt’s 
assets by the return of a craft that had so long been set, 
down among the missing. When all eyes, therefore, were 
turned in curiosity on the handsome face of the fine manly 
youth who now stood at the bedside of the deacon, in- 
cluding those of brother and sister, of nephews and nieces, 
of cousins and friends, those of this servant of the most 
high God was of the number, and not the least express- 
ive of solicitude and expectation. As soon as the deacon 
had caught a little breath, and had swallowed a restora 
tive that the hired nurse had handed to him, his eager 
thoughts reverted to the one engrossing theme of his 
whole life. 

“ These are all friends, Gar’ner,” he said ; “ come to 
visit me in a little sickness that I ’ve been somewhat sub- 
ject to, of late, and who will all be glad to hear of our 
good fortune. So you ’ve brought the schooner back, 
a’ter all, Gar’ner, and will disapp’int the Sag Harbor 
shipowners, who had been all along foretelling that we 
should never see her ag’in : — brought her back, ha ! Gar’- 
ner ? ” 

“ Only in part, Deacon Pratt. We have had good luck 
and bad luck since we left you, and have only brought 
home the best part of the craft.” 

“ The best part,” said the deacon, gulping his words 


THE SEA LIONS. 


445 


in a way that compelled him to pause ; “ the best part ! 
What, in the name of property, has become of the rest ? ” 

“ The rest was burned, sir, to keep us from freezing to 
death.” Roswell then gave a brief but very clear and in- 
telligible account of what had happened, and of the manner 
in which he had caused the hulk of the deacon’s Sea Lion 
to be raised upon by the materials furnished by the Sea 
Lion of the Vineyard. The narrative brought Mary Pratt 
back to the side of the bed, and caused her calm eyes to 
become riveted intently on the speaker’s face. As for the 
deacon, he might have said, with Shakespeare’s Wolsey, — 

“ Had I but served my God with half the zeal 
I served my king, he would not, in mine age, 

Have left me naked to mine enemies.” 

His fall was not that of a loss of power, it is true, but it 
was that of a still more ignoble passion, covetousness. As 
Roswell proceeded, his mind represented one source of 
wealth after another released from his clutch, until it was 
with a tremulous voice, and a countenance from which all 
traces of animation had fled, that he ventured again to 
speak. 

“ Then I may look upon my ventur’ as worse than 
nothing ? ” he said. “ The insurers will raise a question 
about paying for a craft that has been rebuilt in this way, 
and the Vineyard folks will be sartain to put in a claim of 
salvage, both on account of two of their hands helping you 
with the work, and on account of the materials — and we 
with no cargo, as an offset to it all'?” 

“ No, deacon, it is not quite as bad as that,” resumed 
Roswell. “We have brought home a good lot of skins ; 
enough to pay the people full wages and to return you 
every cent of outfit, with a handsome advance on the vent- 
ure. A sealer usually makes a good business of it, if she 
falls in with seals. Our cargo, in skins, can’t be worth 
less than $20,000 ; besides half a freight left on the isl- 
and, for which another craft may be sent.” 

“ That is suthin’, the Lord be praised ! ” ejaculated the 
deacon ; “ though the schooner is as bad as gone, and 
the outlays have been awfully heavy. I ’m almost afraid to 


446 


THE SEA LIONS. 


go any farther. Gar’ner — did you — I grow weak very 
fast — did you stop — Mary, I wish you would put the 
question.” 

“ I am afraid that my uncle means to ask if you stopped 
at the key, in the West Indies, according to your instruc- 
tions, Roswell ? ” the niece said, and most reluctantly, for 
she plainly saw it was fully time her uncle ceased to think 
of the things of this life, and to begin to turn all his 
thoughts on the blessed mediation, and another state of 
being. 

“ I forgot no part of your orders, sir,” rejoined Roswell. 
“ It was my duty to obey them, and I believe I have done 
so to the letter ” — 

“ Stop, Gar’ner,” interrupted the dying man — “ one 
question, while I think of it. Will the Vineyard men have 
any claim of salvage on account of them skins ? ” 

“ Certainly not, sir. These skins are all our own — 
were taken, cured, stowed, and brought home altogether by 
ourselves. There is a lot of skins belonging to the Vine- 
yarders, stowed away in the house, which is yours, deacon, 
and which it would well pay any small craft to go and 
bring away. If anybody is to claim salvage, it will be 
ourselves. No salvage was demanded for the loss off Cape 
Henlopen, I trust ? ” 

“No, none; Daggett behaved what I call liberal in that 
affair,” — half the critics of the day would use the adjective 
instead of the adverb here, and why should Deacon Pratt’s 
English be any better than his neighbors? — “ and so I’ve 
admitted to his friends over on the Vineyard. But, 
Gar’ner, our great affair still remains to be accounted for. 
Do you wish to have the room cleared before you speak 
of that — shall we turn the key on all these folks, and 
then settle accounts — he ! he ! he ! ” 

The deacon’s facetiousness sounded strangely out of 
place to Roswell ; still, he did not exactly know how to 
gainsay his wishes. There might be an indiscretion in 
pursuing his narrative before so many witnesses, and the 
young man paused until the room was cleared, leaving no 
one in it but the sick man, Mary, himself, and the nurse. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


447 


The last could not well be gotten rid of on Oyster Pond, 
where her office gave her an assumed right to know all 
family secrets ; or, what was the same thing to her, to 
fancy that she knew them. Among all the sayings which 
the experience of mankind has reduced to axioms, there is 
not one more just than that which says, “ There are secrets 
in all families.” These secrets the world commonly affects 
to know all about, but we think few will have reached the 
age of threescore without becoming convinced of how 
much pretending ignorance there is in this assumption of 
the world. “ Tot ou tard tout se scait” is a significant 
saying of our old friends, the French, who know as much 
of things in practice as any other people on the face of the 
earth ; but “ tot ou tard tout ne se scait pas” 

“ Is the door shut ? ” asked the deacon, tremulously, for 
eagerness, united to debility, was sadly shaking his whole 
frame. “ See that the door is shut tight, Mary; this is our 
own secret, and nurse must remember that.” 

Mary assured him that they were alone, and turned 
away in sorrow from the bed. 

“ Now, Gar’ner,” resumed the deacon, u open your whole 
heart, and let us know all about it.” 

Roswell hesitated to reply ; for he, too, was shocked at 
witnessing this instance of a soul’s clinging to mammon, 
when on the very eve of departing for the unknown world. 
There was a look in the glazed and sunken eyes of the old 
man that reminded him unpleasantly of that snapping of 
the eyes which he had so often seen in Daggett. 

“ You did n’t forget the key, surely, Gar’ner ? ” asked the 
deacon, anxiously. 

“ No, sir ; we did our whole duty by that part of the 
voyage,” 

“ Did you find it — was the place accurately described ?” 

« No chart could have made it better. We lost a month 
in looking for the principal landmark, which had been 
altered by the weather ; but, that once found, the rest was 
easy. The difficulty we met with in starting has brought 
us home so late in the spring.” 

“ Never mind the spring, Gar’ner ; the part that is past 


448 


THE SEA LIONS. 


is sartaiu to come round ag’in, in due time. And so you 
found the very key that was described by Daggett ? ” 

“We did, sir ; and just where he described it to be.” 

“ And how about the tree, and the little hillock of sand, 
at its foot ? ” 

“ Both were there, deacon. The hillock must have 
grown a good deal, by reason of the shifting sand ; but, all 
things considered, the place was well enough described.” 

“ Well — well — well — you opened the hillock, of 
course ? ” 

“We did, sir; and found the box mentioned by the 
pirate.” 

“ A good large box, I ’ll warrant ye ! Them pirates 
seldom do things by' halves — he ! he ! he ! ” 

“ I can’t say much for the size of the box, deacon — it 
looked to me as if it had once held window-glass, and that 
of rather small dimensions.” 

“ But, the contents — you do not mention the contents.” 

“ They are here, sir,” taking a small bag from his pocket, 
and laying it on the bed, by the deacon’s side. “ The 
pieces are all of gold, and there are just one hundred and 
forty-three of them. Heavy doubloons, it is true, and I 
dare say well worth their sixteen dollars each.” 

The deacon gave a gulp, as if gasping for breath, at the 
same time that he clutched the bag. The next instant he 
was dead ; and there is much reason to believe that the 
demons who had watched him, and encouraged him in his 
besetting sin, laughed at this consummation of their malig- 
nant arts ! If angels in heaven did not mourn at this char- 
acteristic departure of a frail spirit from its earthly tene- 
ment, one who had many of their qualities did. Heavy 
had been the load on Mary Pratt’s heart, at the previous 
display of her uncle’s weakness, and profound was now her 
grief at his having made such an end. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


449 


CHAPTER XXX. 

Fourth Cit. We ’ll hear the will: read it, Mark Antony. 

Cit. The will, the will ! we will hear Caesar’s will. 

Ant. Have patience, gentle friends, I must not read it; 

It is not meet you know how Caesar loved you. 

Julius C.ksak. 

There is usually great haste, in this country, in getting 
rid of the dead. In no other part of the world with which 
we are acquainted are funerals so simple, or so touching ; 
placing the judgment and sins which lead to it, in a far 
more conspicuous light than rank, or riches, or personal 
merits. Scarfs and gloves are given in town, and gloves 
in the country, though scarfs are rare ; but beyond these, 
and the pall, and the hearse, and the weeping friends, an 
American funeral is a very unpretending procession of 
persons in their best attire ; on foot, when the distance is 
short ; in carriages, in wagons, and on horseback, when 
the grave is far from the dwelling. There is, however, 
one feature connected with a death in this country that 
we could gladly see altered. It is the almost indecent 
haste, which so generally prevails, to get rid of the dead. 
Doubtless the climate has had an effect in establishing this 
custom ; but the climate by no means exacts the pre- 
cipitancy that is usually practiced. 

As there were so many friends from a distance present, 
some of whom took the control of affairs, Mary shrinking 
back into herself, with a timidity natural to her sex and 
years, the moment her care could no longer serve her 
uncle, the funeral of the deacon took place the day after 
that of his death. It was the solemn and simple ceremony 
of the country. The Rev. Mr. Whittle conceived that he 
ought to preach a sermon on the occasion of the extin- 
guishment of this “ bright and shining light,” and the body 
29 


450 


THE SEA LIONS. 


was carried to the meeting-house, where the whole congre- 
gation assembled, it being the Sabbath. We cannot say 
much for the discourse, which had already served as eulo- 
giums on two or three other deacons, with a simple substi- 
tution of names. In few things are the credulous more 
imposed on than in this article of sermons. A clergyman 
shall preach the workings of other men’s brains for years, 
and not one of his hearers detect the imposition, purely on 
account of the confiding credit it is customary to yield to 
the pulpit. In this respect, preaching is very much like 
reviewing, — the listener, or the reader, being too complai- 
sant to see through the great standing mystifications of 
either. Yet preaching is a work of high importance to 
men, and one that doubtless accomplishes great good, more 
especially when the life of the preacher corresponds with 
his doctrine ; and even reviewing, though infinitely of less 
moment, might be made a very useful art, in the hands of 
upright, independent, intelligent, and learned men. But 
nothing in this world is as it should be, and centuries will 
probably roll over it ere the “ good time ” shall really 
come ! 

The day of the funeral being the Sabbath, nothing that 
touched on business was referred to. On the following morn- 
ing, however, “ the friends ” assembled early in the parlor, 
and an excuse for being a little pressing was made, on the 
ground that so many present had so far to go. The dea- 
con had probably made a remove much more distant than 
any that awaited his relatives. 

“ It is right to look a little into the deacon’s matters be- 
fore we separate,” said Mr. Job Pratt, who, if he had the 
name, had not the patience of him of old, “ in order to 
save trouble and hard feelings. Among relatives and 
friends there should be nothing but confidence and affec- 
tion, and I am sure I have no other sentiments toward any 
here. I suppose '* — all Mr. Job Pratt knew, was ever on 
a supposition — “I suppose I am the proper person to ad- 
minister to the deacon’s property, though I don’t wish to 
do it, if there ’s the least objection.” 

Every one assented that he was the most proper person, 


THE SEA LIONS. 451 

lor all knew he was the individual the surrogate would be 
the most likely to appoint. 

“ I have never set down the deacon’s property as any 
thing like what common report makes it,” resumed Mr 
Job Pratt; “though I do suppose it will fully reach ten 
thousand dollars.” 

“ La ! ” exclaimed a female cousin, and a widow, who 
had expectations of her own, “ I ’d always thought Deacon 
Pratt worth forty or fifty thousand dollars ! Ten thou- 
sand dollars won’t make much for each of us, divided up 
among so many folks ! ” 

“ The division will not be so very great, Mrs.*Martin,” 
returned Mr. Job, “ as it will be confined to the next of 
kin and their representatives. Unless a will should be 
found — and, by all I can learn, there is none ” — empha- 
sizing the last word with point — “ unless a will be found, 
the whole estate, real and personal, must be divided into 
just five shares; which, accordin’ to my calculation, would 
make about two thousand dollars a share. No great for- 
tin, to be sure ; though a comfortable addition to small 
means. The deacon was cluss (. Anglic^ , close) ; yes, he 
was cluss — all the Pratts are a little given to be cluss ; 
but I don’t know that they are any the worse for it. It is 
well to be curful (careful) of one ’s means, which are a 
trust given to us by Divine Providence.” 

In this manner did Mr. Job Pratt often quiet his con- 
science for being as “ curful ” of his own as of other per- 
sons’ assets. Divine Providence, according to his moral- 
ity, made it as much a duty to transfer the dollar that was 
in his neighbor’s pocket to his own, as to watch it vigi- 
lantly after the transposition has been effected. 

“ A body should be curful, as you say, sir,” returned the 
Widow Martin ; “ and for that reason I should like to 
know if there is n’t a will. I know the deacon set store 
j>y me, and I can hardly think he has departed for another 
world without bethinking him of his cousin Jenny, and *>f 
her widowhood.” 

“ I ’ m afraid he has, Mrs. Martin — really afraid he 
has I can hear of no will. The doctor says he doubts 


452 


THE SEA LIONS. 


if the deacon could ever muster courage to write anything 
about his own death, and that he has never heard of any 
will. I understand Mary, that she has no knowledge of 
any will ; and I do not know where else to turn, in order 
to inquire. Rev. Mr. Whittle thinks there is a will, I 
ought to say.” 

“ There must be a will,” returned the parson, who was 
on the ground again early, and on this very errand ; “ I 
feel certain of that from the many conversations I have 
held with the deceased. It is not a month since I spoke 
to him of divers repairs that were necessary to each and 
all of the^ parish buildings, including the parsonage. He 
agreed to every word I said — admitted that we could not 
get on another winter without a new horse-shed ; and that 
the east end of the parsonage ought to be shingled this 
coming summer.” 

“ All of which may be very true, parson, without the 
deacon’s making a will,” quietly, and we may now add pa- 
tiently, observed Mr. Job. 

“ I don’t think so,” returned the minister, with a 
warmth that might have been deemed indiscreet, did it not 
relate to the horse-shed, the parsonage, and the meeting- 
house, all of which were public property, rather than to 
anything in which he had a more direct legal interest. 
“ A pious member of the church would hardly hold out 
the hopes that Deacon Pratt has held out to me, for more 
than two years, without meaning to make his words good 
in the end. I think all will agree with me in that opin- 
ion.” 

“ Did the deacon, then, go so far as to promise to do 
anything?” asked Mr. Job, a little timidly; for he was by 
no means sure the answer might not be in the affirmative, 
in which case he anticipated the worst. 

u Perhaps not,” answered Minister Whittle, too consci- 
entious to tell a downright lie, though sorely tempted so 
to <^o. “ But a man may promise indirectly, as well as 
directly. When I have a thing much at heart, and con- 
verse often about it with a person who can grant all I 
wish, and that person listens as attentively as I could wish 


THE SEA LIONS. 453 

him to do, I regard that as a promise ; and, in church 
matters, one of a very solemn nature.” 

All the Jesuits in the world do not get their educa- 
tions at Rome, or acknowledge Ignatius Loyola as the 
great founder of their order. Some are to be found who 
. have never made a public profession of their faith and 
zeal, have never assumed the tonsure, or taken the vows. 

“ That ’s as folks think,” quietly returned Mr. Job 
Pratt, though he smiled in a manner so significant as to 
cause Mrs. Martin a new qualm, as she grew more and 
more apprehensive that the property was, after all, to go 
by the distribution law. “ Some folks think a promise 
ought to be. expressed, while others think it may be under- 
stood. The law, I believe, commonly looks for the direct 
expression of any binding promise ; and, in matters of this 
sort, one made in writing, too, and that under a seal, and 
before three responsible witnesses.” 

“I wish a full inquiry might be made, to ascertain if 
there be no will ; ” put in the minister, anxiously. 

“ I ’m quite willing to d<? so,” returned Mr. Job, whose 
confidence and moral courage increased each instant. 
“ Quite willing ; and am rather anxious for it, if I could 
only see where to go to inquire.” 

“ Does no one present know of any will made by the de- 
ceased ? ” demanded Minister Whittle, authoritatively. 

A dead silence succeeded to the question. Eye met 
eye, and there was great disappointment among the numer- 
ous collaterals present, including all those who did not 
come in as next of kin, or as their direct representatives. 
But the Rev. Mr. Whittle had been too long and too 
keenly on the scent of a legacy, to be thrown out of 
the hunt, just as he believed the game was coming in 
tight. 

“ It might be well to question each near relative direct- 
ly,” he added. “ Mr. Job Pratt, do you know nothing of 
any will ? ” 

“ Nothing whatever. At one time I did think the deacon 
meant to make his testament; but I conclude that he must 
have changed his mind.” 


454 


THE SEA LIONS. 


“ And you, Mrs. Thomas,” turning to the sister — K as 
next of kin, I make the same inquiry of you ! ” 

“ I once talked with brother about it,” answered this 
relative, who was working away in a rocking-chair, as if 
she thought the earth might stop in its orbit if she herself 
ceased to keep in motion ; “ but he gave me no satisfactory 
answer — that is, nothin’ that I call satisfactory. Had he 
told me he had made a will, and given me a full shear 
(share), I should have been content ; or, had he told me 
that he had not made a will, and that the law would give 
me a full shear, I should have been content. I look upon 
myself as a person easily satisfied.” 

This was being explicit, and left little more to be ob- 
tained from the deacon’s beloved and only surviving sister. 

“ And you, Mary ; do you know anything of a will made 
by your uncle ? ” 

Mary shook her head ; but there was no smile on her 
features, for the scene was unpleasant to her. 

“ Then no one present knows of any paper that the dea- 
con left specially to be opened after his death ? ” demanded 
Rev. Mr. Whittle, putting the general question pretty much 
at random. 

“ A paper ! ” cried Mary, hastily. “ Yes, I know some- 
thing of a paper — I thought you spoke of a will.” 

“ A will is commonly written on paper, nowadays, Miss 
Mary — but you have a paper ? 

“ Uncle gave me a paper , and told me to keep it till 
Roswell Gardiner came back ; and, if he himself should 
not then be living, to give it to him.” The color now 
mounted to the very temples of the pretty girl, and she 
seemed to speak With greater deliberation and care. “ As 
I was to* give the paper to Roswell, I have always thought 
it related to him. My uncle spoke of it to me as lately as 
the day of his death.” 

“ That ’s the will, beyond a doubt ! ” cried Rev. Mr. 
Whittle, with more exultation than became his profession 
and professions. “ Do you not think this may be Deacon 
Pratt’s will, Miss Mary ? ” 

Now Mary had never thought any such thing. She 


THE SEA LIONS. 


455 


knew that her uncle much wished her to marry Roswell, 
and had all along fancied that the paper she held, which 
indeed was contained in an envelope addressed to her lover, 
contained some expression of his wishes on this to her the 
most interesting of all subjects, and nothing else. Mary 
Pratt thought very little of her uncle’s property, and still 
less of its future disposition, while she thought a great deal 
of Roswell Gardiner and of his suit. It was, consequently, 
the most natural thing in the world that she should have 
fallen into some such error as this. But now that the 
subject was brought to^Jier mind in this new light, she 
arose, went to her own room, and soon reappeared with 
the paper in her hand. Both Mr. Job Pratt and Rev. Mr. 
Whittle offered to relieve her of the burden ; and the for- 
mer, by a pretty decided movement, did actually succeed 
in getting possession of the documents. The papers were 
done up in the form of a large business letter, was duly 
sealed with wax, and was addressed to “ Mr. Roswell Gar- 
diner, Master of the Schooner Sea Lion, now absent on a 
voyage.” The superscription was read aloud, a little under 
the influence of surprise ; notwithstanding which, Mr. Job 
Pratt was very coolly proceeding to open the packet, pre- 
cisely as if it had been addressed to himself. In this de 
cided step, Mrs. Martin, and Mrs. Thomas, and Rev. Mr. 
Whittle, might be set down as accessories before the act ; 
for each approached ; and so eager were the two women, 
that they actually assisted in breaking the seal. 

“ If that letter is addressed to me,” said Roswell Gardi- 
ner, with firmness and authority, “ I claim the right to 
open it myself. It is unusual for those to whom a letter is 
not addressed to assume this office.” 

“ But it comes from Deacon Pratt,” cried the *widow 
Martin, “ and may contain his will.” 

“ In which case, a body would think I have some rights 
concerned,” said Mr. Job Pratt, a little more coolly, but 
with manifest doubts.' 

“ Sartain ! ” put in Mrs. Thomas. “ Brothers and sisters, 
and even cousins, come before strangers, any day. Here 
we are, a brother and sister of the deacon, and we ought 
to have a right to read his letters.” 


456 


THE SEA LIONS. 


All this time Roswell had stood with an extended arm, 
and an eye that caused Mr. Job Pratt to control his impa- 
tience. Mary advanced close to his side, as if to sustain 
him, but she said nothing. 

“ There is a law with severe penalties, against know- 
ingly opening a letter addressed to another,” resumed Ros- 
well, steadily^ “ and it shall be enforced against any one 
who shall presume to open one of mine. If that letter has 
my address, sir, I demand it ; and I will have it, at every 
hazard.” 

Roswell advanced a step nearer Mr. Job Pratt, and the 
letter was reluctantly yielded ; though not until the widow 
Martin had made a nervous but abortive snatch at it. 

“ At any rate, it ought to be opened in our presence,” 
put in this woman, “ that we may see what is in it ” 

“ And by what right, ma’am ? Have I not the privilege 
of others, to read my own letters when and where I please ? 
If the contents of this, however, do really relate to the late 
Deacon Pratt’s property, I am quite willing they should 
be made known. There is nothing on this superscription 
to tell me to open the packet in the presence of witnesses ; 
but, under all the circumstances, I prefer it should be 
done.” 

Hereupon Roswell proceeded deliberately to look into 
the package. The seal was already broken, and he exhib- 
ited it in that state to all in the room, with a meaning 
smile, after which he brought to light and opened some 
written instrument, that was engrossed on a single sheet 
of foolscap, and had the names of several witnesses at its 
bottom. 

“ Ay, ay, that’s it,” said Baiting Joe, for the room was 
crowded with all sorts of people ; “ that ’s the dockerment. 
I know’d it as soon as I laid eyes on it ! ” 

“ And what do you know about it, Josy ? ” demanded the 
widow, eagerly. “ Cousin Job, this man may turn out a 
most important and considerable witness ! ” 

u What do I know, Mrs. Martin ? Why I seed the 
deacon sign for the seals, and exercute. As soon as I 
heard Squire Craft, who was down here from Riverhead 


THE SEA LIONS. 


457 


on that ’ere very business, talk so much about seals, I 
know’d Captain Gar’ner must have suthin’ to do with the 
matter. The deacon’s very heart was in the schooner and 
her v’y’ge, and I think it was the craft that finished him, 
in the end.” 

“ Won’t that set aside a codicil, cousin Job, if so be 
the deacon has ra’ally codiciled off Captain Gar’ner and 
Mary ? ” 

“ We shall see, we shall see. So you was present, Josy, 
at the making of a will ? ” 

“ Sartain — and was a witness to the insterment, as the 
squire called it. I s’pose he sent for me to be a witness, 
as I am some acquainted with the sealin’ business, having 
made two v’y’ges out of Stunnin’tun, many years since. 
Ay, ay ; that ’s the insterment, and pretty well frightened 
was the deacon when he put his name to it, I can tell 
you ! ” 

“ Frightened ! ” echoed the brother — “ that ’s ag’in law, 
at any rate. The instrument that a man signs because 
he ’s frightened, is no instrument at all, in law. As re- 
spects a will, it is what we justices of the peace call ‘ dies 
non,’ or, don’t die ; that is, in law.” 

“ Can that be so, Squire Job ? ” asked the sister, who 
had said but little hitherto, but had thought all the more. 

“Yes, that’s Latin, I s’pose, and good Latin, too, they 
tell me. A man may be dead in the flesh, but living in 
law.” 

“ La ! how cur’ous ! Law is a wonderful thing to them 
that understands it.” 

The worthy Mrs. Thomas expressed a much more pro- 
found sentiment than that of which she was probably 
aware, herself. Law is a wonderful thing, and most won- 
derful is he who can tell what it is to-day, or is likely to 
be to-morrow. Tl^ law of testamentary devises, in par- 
ticular, has more than the usual uncertainty, the great 
interest that is taken by the community in the large es- 
tates of certain individuals who are placed without the or- 
dinary social categories by the magnitude of their fortunes, 
preventing anything from becoming absolutely settled, as 


458 


THE SEA LIONS. 


respects them. In Turkey, and in America, the possession 
of great wealth is very apt to ruin their possessors ; pro- 
scription, in some form or other, being pretty certain to be 
the consequences. In Turkey, such has long and openly 
been the fact, the bow-string usually lying at the side of 
the strong box; but in this country the system is id its 
infancy, though advancing towards maturity with giant 
strides. Twenty years more, resembling the twenty that 
are just past, in which the seed recently sown broadcast 
shall have time to reach maturity, and, in our poor opinion, 
the great work of demoralization, in this important partic- 
ular, will be achieved. We are much afraid that the 
boasted progress, of which we hear so much, will resemble 
the act of the man who fancied he could teach his horse to 
live without food — just as he believed the poor beast was 
perfect, it died of inanition ! 

Roswell read Baiting Joe’s “ insterment ” twice, and 
then he placed it, with manly tenderness, in the hands of 
Mary. The girl read the document, too, tears starting to 
her eyes ; but a bright blush suffused her face as she re- 
turned the will to her lover. 

“ Ah ! do not read it now, Roswell,” she said, in an 
under tone ; but the stillness and expectation were so pro- 
found, that every syllable she uttered was heard by all in 
the room. 

“ And why not read it now, Miss Mary ! ” cried the 
Widow Martin. “ Methinks now is the proper time to 
read it. If I ’m to be codiciled out of that will, I want 
to know it.” 

“ It is better, in every respect, that the company present 
should know all that is to be known, at once,” observed 
Mr. Job Pratt. “ Before the will is read, if that be the 
will, Captain Gar’ner ” — 

“ It is the will of the late Deacon Pratt, duly signed, 
sealed, and witnessed, I believe, sir.” 

“ One word more, then, before it is read. I think you 
said, Josy, that the deceased was frightened when he 
signed that will ? I do not express any opinion until I 
hear the will ; perhaps a’ter it is read, I shall think or say 


THE SEA LIONS. 


459 


nothin’ about this fright ; though the instrument that a 
man signs because he is frightened, if the fright be what I 
call a legal fright, is no instrument at all.” 

“ But such was not the deacon’s case, Squire Job,” put 
in Baiting Joe, at once. “ He did not sign the insterment 
because he was frightened, but was frightened because he 
signed the insterment. Let the boat go right eend fore- 
most, squire.” 

“ Read the will, Captain Gar’ner, if you have it,” said 
Mr. Job Pratt, with decision. “ It is proper that we 
should know who is executor. Friends, will you be silent 
for a moment ? ” 

Amid a death-like stillness, Roswell Gardiner now read 
as follows : — 

“In the name of God, amen. I, Ichabod Pratt, of the 
town of Southold, and county of Suffolk, and State ot 
New York, being of failing bodily health, but of sound 
mind, do make and declare this to be my last will and tes- 
tament. 

“ I bequeath to my niece, Mary Pratt, only child of my 
late brother, Israel Pratt, all my real estate, whatsoever it 
may be, and wheresoever situate, to be held by her, her 
heirs and assigns, forever, in fee. 

“ I bequeath to my brother, Job Pratt, any horse of 
which I shall die possessed, to be chosen by himself, as a 
compensation for the injury inflicted on a horse of his 
while in my use. 

“ I bequeath to my sister, Jane Thomas, the large look- 
ing-glass that is hanging ujf in the east bedroom of my 
house, and which was once the property of our beloved 
mother. 

“I bequeath to the widow Catherine Martin, my cousin, 
the big pincushion in the said east chamber, which she 
used so much to praise and admire. 

“ I bequeath to my said niece, Mary Pratt, the only 
child of my late brother, Israel Pratt, aforesaid, all of my 
personal estate, whether in possession or existing inequity, 
including money at use, vessels, stock on farm, all other 
sorts of stock, furniture, wearing apparel, book-debts. 


460 


THE SEA LIONS. 


money in hand, and all sorts of personal property what- 
ever. 

“ I nominate and appoint Roswell Gardiner, now absent 
on a sealing voyage, in my employment, as the sole execu- 
tor of this my last will, provided he return home within 
six months of my decease ; and should he not return home 
within the said six months, then I appoint my above-men- 
tioned niece and heiress, Mary Pratt, the sole executrix of 
this my will. 

“ I earnestly advise my said niece, Mary Pratt, to marry 
the said Roswell Gardiner ; but I annex no conditions 
whatever to this advice, wishing to leave my adopted 
daughter free to do as she may think best.” 

The instrument was, in all respects, duly executed, and 
there could not be a doubt of its entire validity. Mary felt 
a little bewildered, as well as greatly embarrassed. So 
perfectly disinterested had been all her care of her uncle, 
and so humble her wishes, that she did not for some time 
regard herself as the owner of a property that she had all 
her life been accustomed to consider as a part of her late 
uncle. The heirs expectant, “ a’ter reading the inster- 
ment,” as Baiting Joe told his cronies, when he related the 
circumstances over a mug of cider that evening, “ fore and 
aft, and overhauling it from truck to keelson, give the mat- 
ter up, as a bad job. They could n’t make nawthin’ out 
of oppersition,” continued Joe, “ and so they tuck the 
horse, and the looking-glass, and the pincushion, and 
cleared out with their cargo. You could n’t get one of 
that breed to leave as muclfas a pin behind, to which he 
thought the law would give him a right. Squire Job went 
off very unwillingly ; for so strong was his belief in his 
claim, that he had made up his mind, as he told me him- 
self, to break up the north meadow, and put it in corn* this 
°oming season.” 

u They say that Minister Whittle took it very hard that 
nawthin’ was said about him, or about meetin’, in the dea- 
con’s tfill,” observed Jake Davis, one of Baiting Joe’s cro- 
uies. 

“ That he did ; and he tuck it so hard that everybody 


THE SEA LIONS. 


461 


allows the two sermons he preached the next Sabba* day 
to be the very two worst he ever did preach.” 

“ They must have been pretty bad, then,” quaintly ob- 
served Davis ; “ I Ve long set down Minister Whittle’s dis- 
courses as being a leetle the worst going, when you give him 
a chance.” 

It is unnecessary to relate any more of this dialogue, 
nor should we have given the little we have, did it not vir- 
tually explain what actually occurred on the publication of 
the contents of the will. Roswell met with no opposition 
in proving the instrument, and the day after he was ad- 
mitted to act as executor he was married to Mary Pratt, 
and became tenant, by the courtesy, to all her real estate ; 
such being the law then, though it is so no longer. Now, 
a man and his wife may have a very pretty family quarrel 
about the ownership of a dozen tea-spoons, and the last, 
so far as we can see, may order the first out of one of her 
rocking chairs, if she see fit ! Surely domestic peace is 
not so trifling a matter that the law should seek to add 
new subjects of strife to the many that seem to be nearly 
inseparable from the married state. 

Let this be as it may, no such law existed when Ros- 
well Gardiner and Mary Pratt became man and wife. 
One of the first acts of the happy young couple, after they 
were united, was to make a suitable disposition of the 
money found buried at the foot of the tree, on the so- 
much-talked-of key. Its amount was a little more than 
two thousand dollars, the pirate who made the revelation to 
Daggett having, in all probability, been ignorant himself of 
the real sum that had been thus secreted. By a specific 
bargain with the crew, all this money belonged to the 
deacon ; and, consequently, it had descended to his niece, 
and through her was now legally the property of Roswell. 
The young man was not altogether free from scruples 
about using money that had been originally taken as booty 
by pirates, and his conscientious wife had still greater ob- 
jections. After conferring together on the subject, how- 
ever, and seeing the impossibility of restoring the gold to 
those from whom it had been forced in the first place, the 


*62 


THE SEA LIONS. 


doubloons were distributed among the families of those 
who had lost their lives at Sealer’s Land. The shares did 
not amount to much, it is true ; but they did good, and 
cheered the hearts of two or three widows and dependent 
sisters. 

Nor did Roswell Gardiner’s care for their welfare stop 
here. He had the Sea Lion put in good order, removed 
her decks, raised upon her, and put her in her original 
condition, and sent her to Sealer’s Land again, under the 
orders of Hazard, who was instructed to take in all the oil 
and skins that had been left behind, and to fill up, if he 
could, without risking too much by delay. All this was 
successfully done, the schooner coming back, after a very 
short voyage, and quite full. The money made by this 
highly successful adventure had the effect to console sev- 
eral of those who had great cause to regret their previous 
losses. 

As to Roswell and Mary they had much reason to be 
content with their lot. The deacon’s means were fdund 
to be much more considerable than had been supposed. 
When all was brought into a snug state, Roswell found 
that his wife was worth more than thirty thousand dollars, 
a sum which constituted wealth on Oyster Pond in that 
day. We have, however, already hinted that the simplic- 
ity, and we fear with it the happiness, of the place has de- 
parted. A railroad terminates within a short distance of 
the deacon’s old residence, bringing with it the clatter, am- 
bition, and rivalry of such a mode of traveling. What 
is even worse, the venerable and expressive name of 
“ Oyster Pond,” one that conveys in its very sound the idea 
of savory dishes, and an abundance of a certain and a 
very agreeable sort, has been changed to “ Orient,” Heaven 
save the mark ! Long Island has, hitherto, been famous, 
in the history of New York, for the homely piquancy of 
its names, which usually conveyed a graphic idea of the 
place indicated. It is true, “ Jerusalem ” cannot boast of 
'ts Solomon’s Temple, nor “ Babylon ” of its Hanging 
Gardens ; but, by common consent, it is understood that 
these two names, and some half a dozen more of the same 
quality, are to be taken by their opposites. 


THE SEA LIONS. 


463 


Roswell Gardiner did not let Stimson pass out of his 
sight, as is customary with seamen when they quit a vessel. 
He made him master of a sloop that plied between New 
York and Southhold, in which employment the good old 
man fulfilled his time, leaving to a widowed sister who 
dwelt with him, the means of a comfortable livelihood, for 
life. 

The only bit of management of which Mary could be 
aosused, was practiced by her shortly after Stimson’s death, 
and some six or eight years after her own marriage. One 
of her school friends, and a relative, had married a person 
who dwelt “ west of the bridge,” as it is the custom to say 
of all the counties that lie west of Cayuga Lake. This 
person, whose name was flight, had mills, and made large 
quantities of that excellent flour that is getting to enjoy 
its merited reputation even in the old world. He was dis- 
posed to form a partnership with Roswell, who sold his 
property, and migrated to the great west, as the country 
“ west of the bridge ” was then termed, though it is now 
necessary to go a thousand miles farther, in order to reach 
what is termed “ the western country.” Mary had an im- 
portant agency in bringing about this migration. She had 
seen certain longings after the ocean, and seals, and whales, 
in her husband ; and did not consider him safe, as long as 
he could scent the odors of a salt marsh. There is a de- 
light in this fragrance that none can appreciate as thor- 
oughly as those who have enjoyed it in youth ; it remains 
as long as human senses retain their faculties. An in- 
creasing family, however, and el dorado of the west, which, 
in that day, produced wheat, were inducements for a re- 
moval there, and, aided by Mary’s gentle management, 
produced the desired effect; and for more than twenty 
years Roswell Gardiner has been a very successful miller, 
on a large scale, in one of the western counties of what is 
called “ the Empire State.” We do not think the sobriquets 
of this country very happy, in general, but shall quarrel 
less with this than with the phrase “ commercial empo- 
rium ; ” which is much as if one should say “ a townish 
town.” 


464 


THE SEA LIONS. 


Roswell Gardiner has never wavered in his faith, from 
the time when his feelings were awakened bj the just 
view of his own insignificance, as compared to the power 
of God ! He then learned the first, great lesson in re- 
ligious belief, that of humility ; without which no man can 
be truly penitent, or truly a Christian. He no longer 
thought of measuring the Deity with his narrow faculties, 
or of setting up his blind conclusions, in the face of posi- 
tive revelations. He saw that all must be accepted, or 
none ; and there was too much evidence, too much inherent 
truth, a morality too divine, to allow a mind like his to 
reject the gospel altogether. With Mary at his side, he 
has continued to worship the Trinity, accepting its mys- 
teries in a humble reliance on the words of inspired 
men. 


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